Punjab Police Arrest 11 in University Violence Cases
Nine held over LPU unrest, two former Chitkara University students arrested over alleged rumour-spreading
- Nine people, including a minor, arrested in LPU violence case.
- Two former Chitkara University students held over alleged misinformation.
- Police have identified additional suspects in both cases.
- Investigations focus on vandalism, arson, looting and rumour-spreading.
GG News Bureau
Chandigarh, 3rd Oct: Punjab Police have arrested 11 people in connection with separate incidents of violence and unrest at Lovely Professional University (LPU) and Chitkara University, officials said Friday.
The arrests follow protests and mob violence at the two universities after allegations involving the sexual assault of a female student at LPU and reports concerning missing students at Chitkara University.
Patiala Police arrested two former Chitkara University students and named eight others in connection with alleged provocation of violence on the campus.
SSP Harman Hans said the two arrested accused repeatedly posted what police described as misleading content on social media pages, including “Chitkara University Memes”, and circulated it through WhatsApp and Instagram groups.
Police alleged that hours before the unrest, one of the accused uploaded a video showing an ambulance and manipulated its timing to suggest that two girls had died and were being taken away.
The arrested accused were identified as Aryan Shukla, a 2026 passout, and Himanshu, a former student who dropped out around one-and-a-half years ago.
According to police, Shukla was arrested from Ambala, where he was working from home for a Bengaluru-based organisation, while Himanshu was arrested from his residence in Nangal. Police said they have identified eight other people allegedly involved in spreading rumours and provoking students and have formed teams to apprehend them.
In the LPU case, police arrested nine people from different parts of the country, including a minor. DIG Naveen Singla of the Jalandhar Range said seven of those arrested are students and two are outsiders.
The minor was arrested from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh. Police said he was allegedly the student seen standing on a decommissioned MiG fighter aircraft displayed at the university. According to Singla, the same photograph was found as the wallpaper on the minor’s phone when he was arrested.
Among those arrested was Sonipat-based social media influencer James Dahiya and Ashutosh from Hamirpur. Other accused identified by police include Antriksh Dutta and Sahil Singh from Jammu, and Krishna Kumar Rajesh and Bhavishya Karan from Maharashtra.
Police also said that another accused, Mohammad Farhan, a social media influencer and LPU student, escaped during a raid at his residence in Kashmir.
Police identified Gagandeep and Jasmeet, both residents of Phagwara, as outsiders arrested in the LPU case. Singla said the two work at separate pizza outlets with branches on the campus and had reached the university after the violence began.
Police alleged that both were involved in looting.
Two FIRs have been registered in connection with arson, looting, vandalism, infrastructure damage and the burning of police vehicles at LPU. Police said arrests were made on the basis of CCTV footage, technical analysis, media and social media posts and other evidence.
The investigations into the two university incidents remain underway.
