New Delhi: Violent protests broke out at the Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Bhopal, Tuesday night following allegations of an outbreak of jaundice on campus, caused by contaminated water and food at the varsity mess.
Students also allege that there have been a few deaths due to the outbreak, but the university and district administration have denied any deaths on campus.
The administration has announced that VIT Bhopal, which is located on the Indore–Bhopal Highway in Sehore district, will remain closed until 8 December, and exams scheduled for 4 December are postponed.
Late on Wednesday, the police registered an FIR against a hostel warden and five university staff members for allegedly assaulting protesting students under sections 190, 191(2), 296A, 115(2), and 351(3) of the BNSS.
“A video had gone viral in which a warden named Prashant Kumar Pandey and his team were seen assaulting students. We examined it and filed an FIR,” Akash Amalkar, Sub-Divisional Officer of Police for the Ashta subdivision in Sehore district told ThePrint.
The Madhya Pradesh Private Universities Regulatory Commission has formed a three-member panel to investigate the matter and submit a report within three days. Policemen have been deployed on the VIT Bhopal campus to maintain order.
According to students, more than two dozen students fell sick after drinking contaminated water and eating at the university mess over the last two weeks. The students claim that they were repeatedly complaining about the issue to the administration but to no avail.
“Around 20 students have been admitted (in hospital) after a jaundice infection on the campus. There are rumours that at least three students have died. The students were demanding basic necessity—clean food and water—but the administration was not even entertaining their requests. It was constantly brushing away their concerns. That’s why their anger burst yesterday night and a protest broke out at the campus,” a student told ThePrint, requesting anonymity.
The students said they were protesting peacefully but the security staff manhandled them, after which the protest turned violent. “There was no violence till some students were manhandled and mistreated by the security at the campus, after which the protest turned violent,” said another student.
University Registrar K.K. Nair denied the allegations of manhandling and deaths on campus. Speaking to ThePrint, he said that over 2,000 students protested on the campus Tuesday night, vandalised the mess area, torched three vehicles and an ambulance, and even damaged lifts at the campus.
“There have been no deaths in the university due to jaundice. There were a few cases of jaundice reported in the university and they were given proper medical care. The situation is not alarming. We deny all these allegations. They are motivated, they are mischievous, they are (meant) to create confusion,” he told ThePrint.
When asked about the cause of the jaundice outbreak, Nair said, “We are also investigating the reason. The district administration had collected food and water samples from our mess earlier this week, and they were found to be safe. Samples have now been collected again.”
District administration, police in action
Nitin Kumar Tale, Sub-Divisional Magistrate of the Ashta subdivision in Sehore district, also denied allegations of deaths due to jaundice. Tale told ThePrint that the situation was under control and that food and water samples had been collected from the university twice between Tuesday and Wednesday.
“We are closely examining the situation. There have been no deaths due to jaundice. A student from the university passed away at her home, but it was not due to jaundice; it was a TB-related death,” he added.
Akash Amalkar, Sub-Divisional Officer of Police for the Ashta subdivision in Sehore district, said that the university administration had informed him that two cars and one bus were vandalised, and window panes smashed.
Amalkar said 30 percent students have already left the campus after the university announced it would remain closed until 8 December. “The situation is under control on campus. We are in constant touch with the administration,” he added.
The police have also requested the list of students who fell sick. “We are monitoring the medical status of all students,” Amalkar said.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)