Tension grips Vani Vihar as six get injured in midnight attack

Tension grips Vani Vihar as six get injured in midnight attack

-- Four arrested, elections for the year cancelled

BHUBANESWAR: Six students including Utkal University Students’ Union president Tanmay Swain were injured when some unidentified miscreants attacked them by entering into a hostel in the Vani Vihar campus here in the wee hours of Wednesday. Four were arrested in connection with the case, police sources said.

According to sources, about fifteen bike-borne miscreants entered into Hostel-I and started beating some inmates inside their rooms with iron rods and baseball sticks. The other hostel inmates were fast asleep at that hour of the night. The miscreants also torched two motorcycles of Ajay Kumar Pani and Trilochan Behera and then left the campus.

Three of the injured students were admitted in the Capital Hospital, while others were rushed to private hospitals in the city. The condition of a student is stated to be very critical.

“We have already informed everything in detail about the incident to the Government and the Chancellor’s office. Police have been deployed in the campus to keep vigil on the situation. We have also informed the police to take appropriate action against the miscreants who committed the violence,” said Utkal University Registrar Debendranath Jena.

The Commissionerate Police on Wednesday arrested four youths, including two students of the university, in connection with the case and forwarded them to court. One platoon police force has been deployed in the university campus. Investigation is underway and rest of the culprits would be apprehended soon, said the police.

The PG council called a meeting after the incident to discuss over the matter. The university students staged dharna in front of the university gate demanding immediate arrest of the culprits.

While it is being said that one of two rival groups of the Students Congress owing allegiance to two top leaders of the party is involved in the attack, PCC vice-president Lalatendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra demanded proper inquiry into the incident to get at the truth.

It may be noted that on July 12 this year, five students were injured in a group-clash between two student groups in the university campus. The fallout had originated from an argument regarding setting up of a help desk in the campus.

Following the tension, the PG Council and the university authorities have cancelled this year’s election.