Unrest on NIT Srinagar campus; outstation students protest, lathicharged

With the situation being tense, CRPF was tonight deployed at campus and Jammu and Kashmir government assured full security to the students from other states studying here. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh also called up Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and discussed with her the situation at NIT. Some non-local students attempted to leave the campus and return to their home states, saying, they were "not feeling safe" inside the campus, a police official said. Police personnel on duty at the NIT tried to reassure the students that they were safe inside the campus but they were not pacified, he said. As the head of the security deployment was speaking to them, a few of the students allegedly resorted to sloganeering and even pushed him around, the official claimed. He said the other police personnel then resorted to "lathicharge" to disperse the students who were "getting violent". The situation, however, was brought under control shortly, the official said. Outstation students, on the other hand, alleged that they were holding protests and were lathicharged by the police with brute forces and not allowed to move out of the NIT gate. - PTI