Patna, May 17: On a day when many school students passed out with flying colours, some of their seniors at College of Arts and Crafts, Patna, were busy hurling stones and damaging college property.

The fifth and final year students of the college destroyed the property of the institute they have been a part of for the past four years. Their grievance: Not allowed to take part in the painting camp at Buddha Smriti Park on the occasion of Buddha Poornima.

This was the second attack on an education institution in the city in two days. Yesterday, students of Patna University went on the rampage alleging that they were not informed about the examinations.

Pinku, a fifth year student of College of Arts and Crafts, Patna, said: “The college (actually the state government) organised a painting competition at Buddha Smriti Park on the occasion of Buddha Poornima but only 20 second and third year students are participating in it. The fifth year students have been left out.”

By not allowing them to participate, the college was “playing with their future”, the students said. They shouted slogans against the college authorities as well as the university administration, claiming that they were being partial towards some students.

A student of the college said: “In other arts and crafts colleges, final year students get the maximum exposure. But here (College of Arts and Crafts, Patna), the final year students are left jobless and our juniors are taking our jobs.”

Final year students of College of Arts and Crafts, Patna, stage a demonstration on the campus on Tuesday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

The students further alleged that most of the students selected to take part in the camp are from the sculpture and applied arts departments.

“How can students of sculpture and applied arts can take part in a state-level painting camp?” a student asked.

The college principal, Atul Aditya Pandey, denied the students’ allegation that only third year students were selected for the camp.

“The camp has been organised by the state’s art, culture and youth affairs department and we have selected the best students. It is natural that the students who have not got a chance to take part in the event will have grievances,” he said.

The agitation today was not the first campus chaos at the art hub in the recent times. In the first week of this month, two groups of students of College of Arts and Crafts, Patna, clashed on the college campus. The clash erupted after a girl slapped a boy, as they were arguing over the financial irregularities at the freshers’ day party organised on April 13. The girl students alleged that some of the boys of the college had committed financial irregularities at the function.