BHU chief proctor named in student’s murder says not involved, I’m being dragged in

A friend of Gaurav Kumar, who was shot dead on campus, claimed he was killed by a criminal gang of Banaras Hindu University that's 'encouraged by chief proctor'.

Banaras Hindu University | Commons

New Delhi: The chief proctor of Banaras Hindu University (BHU), who has been charged with the murder of a final-year student on campus, said she’s been dragged into the incident and that she was not involved in any manner.

“They (the victim’s friends and family) are trying to pull me into the case without any reason,” BHU chief proctor Royana Singh told ThePrint over phone. “Even as it is very disheartening to know that the murder was committed on campus, I am unable to take any step in this regard right now as I am out of the campus. I will be back in a couple of days and will take stock of the security situation.”

Gaurav Kumar (23), a final-year MCA student, was shot dead Tuesday evening allegedly by bike-borne assailants outside his hostel, Birla A. He was rushed to a hospital, where he died during treatment.

The FIR named the chief proctor, four varsity students — Ashutosh Tripathi, Rupesh Tiwari, Kumar Mangalam, Vinay Dwivedi — and three unidentified students.

All the four BHU students were arrested Wednesday. The accused have been booked under IPC sections 147, 148, 149 (unlawful assembly and rioting), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder) and 34 (acts done in furtherance of common intention).

‘Gaurav was killed by a criminal gang on campus’

Gaurav’s friend and batchmate Ashutosh Singh who was with him when the attack took place told ThePrint that the murder was committed by students who are part of a gang on campus that regularly engages in criminal activities. They are “encouraged by the chief proctor”, he said.

“The boys who shot at Gaurav are part of a criminal gang on campus. They indulge in theft, rioting and other activities on campus and no one dares to touch them. They also carried a gun with them and the administration did not do anything about it,” said Ashutosh.

“Gaurav, I and some of our other friends tried to protest against these boys, which is why this attack happened. This conspiracy was primarily against all of us, but I and another friend, who were on the (crime) spot, managed to duck the bullets and Gaurav got injured,” he said.

‘He stood up for the right cause’

Gaurav’s friends and family described him as a peace-loving boy who stood up for the right cause and believed in helping people. His father is a non-teaching employee in BHU and Gaurav got admission under the quota for children of employees. After pursuing his graduation in social sciences from the varsity, Gaurav took admission in the MCA programme in 2016.

“Gaurav was a kind-hearted boy who always helped others and kept away from trouble. We are unable to understand how he can be shot on the campus in full public view. We are not happy with the attitude of the administration and local police in their dealings with the case,” said Gaurav’s uncle.

A look at Gaurav’s social media profile and media reports, however, shows he was involved in some cases in the past. In 2017, he was involved in a case of arson and rioting in which he and his friends allegedly set a school bus on fire protesting the arrest of a fellow classmate. He was also a part of a protest that took place on the BHU campus in 2017 after a woman student was allegedly harassed on campus.