Tension mounted at the Allahabad University (AU) on Saturday afternoon after some unidentified youths attacked a BA second year student with iron roads. Pankaj Pandey alias Kabir succumbed to injuries.Following this, angry students of the university went on a rampage, clashed with police and ransacked portions of the Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital, where Pandey’s body was kept for postmortem.Pandey, a resident of Hindu Hostel, was standing near the Department of Fine Arts when six youths, allegedly students of the university, attacked him. A professor of the department, Ajay Jaitly immediately rushed Pandey to the Preethi Hospital, a private nursing home, where he was declared dead on arrival. The motive behind the attack could not be ascertained. Some students of the university, however, alleged that Chief Proctor Jata Shankar was well aware of the identity of the assailants and was trying to protect them. Shankar, however, denied the allegations and said he was in the office when the incident took place. He said he immediately rushed to the spot but the assailants had fled by then. Later, agitated students also accused the doctors of delaying Pandey’s treatment and beat up some staff of the Preethi Hospital. A lensmen present at the spot was also attacked by some of the students. They blocked the entrance of the Swaroop Rani Nehru Hospital and demanded immediate arrest of the accused and removal of the chief proctor. Inspector General of Police S K Shukla reached the hospital along with his deputy and a large police contingent. He held talks with the students and assured them of immediate action. The students threatened to launch a massive agitation, if police fail to book the accused within 24 hours. Son of an Army officer, Pandey was the resident of Tatarganj.
