CHANDIGARH: Punjab Police has registered three First Information Reports (FIRs) against unidentified persons and constituted an eight-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged acts of arson, robbery and attempt to murder during violence at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Phagwara near Jalandhar this weekend.
Sources said two FIRs were registered at the Sadar police station in Phagwara, while a third was registered at the Satnampura police station in Kapurthala district.
The FIRs were registered on September 28 on complaints filed by on-duty police personnel under Section 109 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (attempt to murder), Section 132 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant), Section 221 (obstructing a public servant), Section 309 (robbery), and Sections 324 and 326 (mischief and property damage), besides provisions of the National Highways Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public and Private Property Act.
A senior police official privy to the developments said an eight-member SIT headed by Phagwara Superintendent of Police Major Singh, comprising three SP-rank officers, had also been formed as police suspect that outsiders played a major role in instigating the unrest on the university campus.
Preliminary findings indicate that several people involved in the violence were university alumni living in rented accommodation outside the campus and originally from other states, sources said.
Earlier, a rape case under Section 64 of the BNS was registered against unidentified suspects following allegations involving a female student. However, the identity of the alleged victim has not yet been established, sources said.
The SIT has also sought footage from the university’s network of around 5,500 CCTV cameras and deployed technical personnel to scan digital databases, sources said.
Investigators have begun identifying those involved based on technical evidence collected from the spot by the police technical and cyber cell teams. The teams are cross-referencing video recordings, surveillance logs and viral social media reels to identify masked instigators, sources said.
The LPU administration has been directed to submit the list of members of the student grievance committee and details of staff availability. It has also been asked to ensure that no employee resigns or remains absent without explanation during the inquiry and to appoint an administrative liaison officer to coordinate with the SIT for a smooth and impartial probe, sources said.
The violence at the LPU campus erupted on Sunday following unverified reports that an outsider had allegedly raped a female student. The incident was followed by the blocking of the Amritsar-Delhi National Highway (NH-44), vandalism of university property and the setting ablaze of vehicles.
