BHU unrest: FIR registered against 1000 BHU students

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) office in Varanasi on 25 September confirmed that an FIR has been registered against 1000 Banaras Hindu University (BHU) students in Lanka police station for arson and other charges.

Earlier in the day, a Station House Officer (SHO) of Lanka area, Circle Officer (CO) of Bhelupur and one Additional City Magistrate (ACM) were removed after they were held prima facie responsible for imposing lathicharge on the BHU students.

Yesterday, Congress leaders P.L. Punia, Raj Babbar and Ajay Rai were detained by police, ahead of their participation in the students' protest march at BHU.

Meanwhile, Varanasi Commissioner Nitin Ramesh Gokarn had informed ANI that there has been normalcy at present after the agitation.

Refuting assumptions of university being closed due to protests, Gokarn clarified that university has been closed till October 2 on account of Dussehra festival. Kashi Vidyapeeth and other affiliated colleges have also been closed on the same account.

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday lathi-charged the BHU students, who were protesting since three days against alleged molestation of a University girl.

It has been reported that the protesting students tried to enter the residence of the Vice Chancellor and when the deployed security forces tried to stop them, students became violent; it is then when the security forces used lathi-charged to disperse them.

The students alleged that the police thrashed them and dragged them through hair, but DM Varanasi, who was present on the spot, denied all such claims.

The ongoing protesters outside the BHU campus triggered when a first-year female student of BHU alleged that she was molested by three bike-borne men outside the campus on 21 September.

The victim in the matter has claimed that she went to the university administration for complaining about the incident but the administration in lieu of taking any action against the molesters, shamed the victim for her awkward hostel timings.

Angered over the laid back attitude of the administration and lack of action from the side, the students staged protests outside the campus on 22 September and blocked entry to the campus through the main gate. 

-ANI