Assailants fire shots at BHU hostel, angry students stage protest

“Mishra handed over four empty cartridges that were allegedly used in the firing at him. Efforts are underway to arrest the accused,” said Raj Kumar Sharma, Station House Officer of Lanka police station.

The police suspect that the incident occurred due to a clash for supremacy within the university, and believe that the attack on Mishra was a fallout of an old dispute between two groups.

On receiving information about the protest, university officers and police personnel rushed to the spot. The blockade was lifted after the authorities assured the students that appropriate action would be taken. Based on a complaint filed by Mishra, the police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) at Lanka police station against five people, including current and former students of the university, on charges of attempt to murder.

In his complaint, Roshan Mishra has named three students — Piyush Tiwari, Rishabh, and Tapas — along with two former students, Kshitiz Upadhyay and Abhishek Upadhyay.

During the preliminary inquiry, the police learnt that Mishra had been booked last month for allegedly attacking Piyush Tiwari — one of the accused in the present case — following a dispute. Tiwari had reportedly sustained an injury to his head in that incident.

The university on Sunday lodged an FIR against students who were protesting over the firing, alleging that they misbehaved with members of the proctorial team and security staff who had reached the hostel after receiving information about the incident.

The students were also accused of using abusive language against the Chief Proctor.

On a complaint filed by the university’s security officer, Parmanand Singh, the Varanasi police registered an FIR against unidentified students at the Lanka police station. No one has been arrested in this connection so far, Varanasi Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Gaurav Kumar.

The case was registered under various charges, including rioting, voluntarily causing hurt, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and wrongful restraint.

According to the complaint, a team comprising members of the university’s proctorial board and security personnel rushed to the spot. On reaching there, they allegedly found around 35–40 students abusing the Chief Proctor. When the students were asked to stop, they allegedly pushed members of the proctorial team as well as the security staff. The complaint further alleged that the students later blocked the road, disrupting movement in the area.