Lovely Professional University (LPU) founder-chancellor and BJP MP Ashok Mittal on Wednesday said there was a "big conspiracy" behind the violence and vandalism on the university campus in Phagwara.
It was Mittal's first reaction since protests erupted at the university over the alleged rape of a female student on campus.
The Rajya Sabha MP said, "Absolutely, there is some conspiracy behind it." He was speaking to reporters at a rally in Jalandhar addressed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah at the culmination of the BJP's 'Nasha Mukt Punjab Yatra'.
"I have less concern for LPU. I have concerns for my Punjab, which is a border state," Mittal said when asked about the extent of damage to campus property.
"Why did it happen in the border state, and who did it? I have a concern for national security -- who was behind it and who let it happen," said Mittal, who was earlier with the Aam Aadmi Party.
Mittal claimed that the rape allegation was made to defame Punjab and LPU. "There is no victim. No victim has been found yet," he asserted.
The BJP MP said students, whom he called "sincere and committed", were provoked to join the protest. "We will examine all points on our own and where need arises, will take help of governments so the right thing comes to the fore," he said.
Mittal also criticised the incident in which a protester climbed onto a decommissioned MiG-23UM aircraft installed on the campus, while others climbed onto a military tank. "They climbed atop a MiG-23 and a tank. They insulted the country and brave soldiers," he said.
Mittal said that before LPU, a protest had also been held at Chitkara University. "It is a matter of Punjab's security. I am more afraid that Punjab is not safe. My Punjab should remain safe. It is a border state."
Meanwhile, a public interest litigation has been filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking a CBI probe into the vandalism and violence at LPU. The high court on Wednesday sought a status report from the Punjab government on its probe into the matter.
On Sunday, LPU students held a large protest and blocked a stretch of the New Delhi-Amritsar Highway outside the campus.
Students alleged that an outsider had raped a female student on the university premises and that the administration had hushed up the matter.
They also alleged that some outsiders with their faces covered damaged property, ransacked shops and set several places on fire on the campus.
Police have filed a rape case based on the complaint of students and booked unidentified persons over the violence and arson.
On Monday, a large number of students headed home after classes were suspended for 10 days, bringing calm to the campus after days of unrest.
(With inputs from PTI)
