JOIN US Tension prevailed on the campus following the death of second-year engineering student Gautham after his two-wheeler collided with a lorry last week.
Following Gautham’s death, a section of students went to the vice-chancellor to lodge a complaint about the lack of proper medical attention given to the badly injured student at the university’s Medical College Hospital.
The protesting students then were allegedly prevented from meeting the vice-chancellor and the police brutally chased them away from the scene. In the melee, three students who fell into a nearby canal drowned, sparking further protests on the campus.
Two of the students who died in the incident were from Bihar and one from Jharkhand.
Condemning the violent incidents on the campus and the attitude of the police which led to the loss of lives of three more students, CPM state secretary G Ramakrishnan demanded a judicial inquiry as such “student deaths were again becoming an annual feature.”
Ramakrishnan also demanded action against the police officials responsible for the “needless lathi-charge” on the students.
The death of two Bihari students — Ashish Ranjan and Sarfaraz — found its echo in Patna when Chief Minister Nitish Kumar called up his Tamil Nadu counterpart M Karunanidhi and sought protection to those studying at Annamalai Engineering College.
Nitish also announced a compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh each to the families of the two students who lost their lives.
Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Secretary Anup Mukherjee and DGP Neelmani have been asked to remain in touch with their TN counterpart to ensure safety of students.