The students held the protest inside the university campus and demanded the girl who fainted be produced before them as they claimed she had attempted suicide. The protest was going on till the filing of this story.
The protesting students also demanded a copy of the FIR, which is in Punjabi, and said it should be translated and shared widely. However, they urged their fellow students to remain calm and protest peacefully.
Additional Director General of Police Gurpreet Deo said they have sent the mobile phone for forensic analysis and any deleted videos will be retrieved. The truth will come out once the two accused are brought face to face.
In a tweet, Himachal Pradesh DGP Sanjay Kundu said, “Punjab Police reached PS Rohru in Shimla. The accused Sunny Mehta has been handed over to them. Zero tolerance to crime against women. If any collateral evidence comes our way, we will take action as per law. Himachal Pradesh Police reacted to request of Punjab Police with sensitivity & professionalism. We nabbed the accused. Congrats to Dr Monika, SP Shimla & her team for great professional work.”
The students confronted Vice-Chancellor Dr Anand Agrawal who tried to pacify them by urging them not to believe in rumours. “This is not a rumour,” yelled a girl student.
The varsity management suggested that the students set up a 10-member committee for a dialogue with the authorities but they declined the offer.
Some students alleged that they were being offered allurements to keep quiet. “When the girl is herself saying that she had filmed others, why are university and police denying it?” asked a young undergraduate male student. “Why was there a lathicharge on the campus?” asked his friend.
An undergraduate student claimed the warden told them that when “your videos are not there (in the accused’s mobile), why are you protesting?”
Many protesting students said the accused should be produced before them so that she could tell them who all she had filmed.
Ropar range DIG Gurpreet Singh Bhullar told the protesting students that they would get the case investigated by a Special Investigation Team.
The students also objected to the university authorities concluding — without the forensic investigation of the cell phone of the accused — that the accused woman had sent only her video and that she did not film other students.
Mohali SSP Vivek Sheel Soni, however, said they have not given a clean chit to anyone.
Some students demanded suspension of the warden. The protesters demanded compensation to the students admitted to hospital. They questioned the delay in lodging the FIR after the girl students had brought the issue to the notice of the university authorities.
Some students said that they were not sensitised by the university authorities about how to use their cell phones in hostels.
A student of the psychology department said that when they took admission, nobody sensitised them. She added that there must be a mechanism to sensitise the students so that such incidents do not occur in future.
A minor scuffle broke out between the students. Some students of Chandigarh University alleged that the students from Panjab University tried to rake up the matter during the protest.
Some of the protesting students moved towards the LC hostel where the incident had happened.
