Lucknow University shuts down indefinitely after attack on staff
ADMISSION SUSPENDED Teachers’ association meeting today to take call on future action
LUCKNOW:THE University of Lucknow has decided to suspend its admission process following attack on its staffers by “anti-social elements”, vice-chancellor SP Singh said on Wednesday. The university will remain closed until further notice, he said.
The university, which was scheduled to open on July 10, was currently undertaking postgraduation admission process.
“The PG counselling scheduled for Thursday stands cancelled. The new date will be announced after the general body meeting of Lucknow University Teachers Association (LUTA),” spokesperson NK Pandey said.
He asked students to keep in touch through the official website for further updates.
The university was last closed indefinitely in December 2006, when student leaders resorted to violence ahead of the union polls that was later called off.
The vice-chancellor alleged that chief proctor Vinod Singh and other staffers were injured when a group of around 25 people – mostly students expelled from the institution – pelted them with stones and beat them up. Calling it “unprecedented”, he denounced the police for acting like mute spectators when maintaining law and order on the campus was their responsibility.
Chief proctor Singh claimed he alerted the police on two occasions on Wednesday, but received no response. RK Singh, dean of student welfare, and RR Yadav, dean of college development council, were among the injured.
The vice-chancellor said he was leaving his office around 11.30am to address a function when one Akash Saxena Lala lay down in front of his car, with a few others surrounding him.
When the vice-chancellor was coming out of the venue around 1.30pm, a group of 23 students – led by Ashish Singh Boxer and Akit Singh Babu – allegedly attacked him and his staffers.
The decision to suspend the admission process was taken soon afterwards.
LUTA general secretary Durgesh Srivastava said the future course of action will be decided at an emergency meeting on Thursday morning. Additional superintendent of police (Trans Gomti) Harendra Kumar said, “Sufficient police were deployed on the campus and some were taken into custody for causing nuisance.