The high court on Wednesday directed the agitating non-teaching employees of Patna University who have allegedly encroached upon the varsity premises to relent by Friday, paving the way for conducting an eviction drive and restore the academic environment.

Acting Chief Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari and Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh passed the order, while hearing a petition filed by Vikas Chandra alias Guddu Baba.

The petitioner alleged that the academic environment of the university has collapsed because of rampant encroachment in almost all the colleges of PU and its hostels.

The court on Wednesday said if the academic environment was not restored by Friday, a team of lawyers would be formed on the directive of the court. They would go to the university to find out the veracity of the claims made by the employees on strike that they were not the encroachers.

The court on June 29 had directed Patna district magistrate, senior superintendent of police and the registrar of Patna University to remove the encroachment from the campus within 15 days. But the anti-encroachment drive was hampered because of the ongoing strike of the non-teaching employees, the petitioner told the court.

The non-teaching employees are on strike since last week in support of their various demands, including stay on the eviction order and salary hike. An intervener application was filed on Wednesday in the court on behalf of the employees on strike, who claimed to be innocent.