BENGALURU: Hundreds of students at Bengaluru University’s Jnana Bharathi campus protested on Wednesday following the death of a first-year postgraduate student who was seriously injured in a road accident on the campus on Thursday and died on Wednesday.
The students submitted a memorandum to the vice-chancellor (VC), urging the university to restrict the movement of public vehicles through Gandhi Marga that passes through the campus to prevent such accidents in the future.
The deceased, Manasa (23), who hailed from Nanjangud in Mysuru district, was a first-year PG student in the Department of Visual Arts.
According to the Jnana Bharathi traffic police, on Thursday, Manasa was crossing the road near the Gandhi Marga canteen when a speeding autorickshaw crashed into her, leaving her critically injured. She was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a private hospital in Nagarbhavi, where she succumbed to her injuries on Wednesday. The police said a case was registered, the autorickshaw driver was arrested and later released on bail. A case under Section 106 (causing death by negligence) has been invoked, they said.
On Wednesday, hundreds of students and faculty members protested under the banner “Justice for Manasa”. In their memorandum to the V-C, they also demanded that the university extend all possible support to her family, ensure justice in her case and reimburse the medical expenses incurred by her family for her treatment.
The memorandum by the guest faculty and students of the Department of Visual Arts stated that the incident has left students, faculty members and staff deeply shocked and distressed, raising serious concerns about students’ safety on the campus.
The memorandum stated that accidents occur frequently on Gandhi Marga, mainly due to over-speeding and reckless driving by motorists.
The memorandum also stated that the situation is aggravated by fruit vendors operating near the canteen and in front of the Northeast girls’ hostel, where vehicles make abrupt stops. If a complete restriction is not feasible, at least one-way traffic should be implemented and speed-control barricades should be installed at regular intervals, it said.
“The University is responsible for the safety and well-being of its students and staff. Any delay in taking appropriate action will only lead to more accidents,” the memorandum stated.