A group of unidentified men of Saidpur Hostel entered Patna College on Wednesday and shot at a student injuring him seriously.

The incident, which has again punched holes in the way the 153-year-old college is being run and claims of stern security of the Patna police, occurred around 10.45am when most of the students were attending classes.

The injured, Neeraj Kumar, a second-year student of political science, suffered a bullet injury in his lower back and is undergoing treatment at the Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH). Another student, Raja, a second-year history student, also suffered a serious head injury.

"The incident seems to be a fallout of Tuesday's squabble between two student groups at a private coaching centre. The reason behind the incident is being investigated. A raid was conducted at the Saidpur Hostel (around 3km from the Patna College). A named FIR has been lodged against two people who, according to one of the victims, live in the Saidpur Hostel, which mainly houses postgraduate students of Patna University," said Nisar Ahmed, the station house officer of Pirbahore police station.

Though the hostel is supposed to be the abode of PG students, it is a known fact that there are many who illegally live in the facility.

"No arrests have been made so far. Neeraj's surgery is over but he is not in a position to give a statement. We believe that the attackers had entered the college in the morning and were waiting for boys," said the SHO.

Eyewitnesses said a group of 15 to 16 boys had assembled at a spot located around 150 metres from the main gate of the college. "We don't know how the fight started. But as I was going towards my class, I saw the boys who didn't look friendly. It was around 10.40am when I heard at least three shots. The classes continued normally, as we didn't suspect any foul play. It was only after the class ended that we came to know about the incident. I don't know what exactly happened and who the attackers were," Vimal, a first-year student of Hindi literature, said.

Another student, who requested not to be named, said the attackers were from the Saidpur Hostel.

"The boys who attacked our students stay in Saidpur Hostel. A day back, some students, including Raja and Neeraj, who are boarders of the college's Jackson Hostel, had gone to a private coaching institute at Makhaniya Kuan area, located half-a-km from the college, for some work. There, some boys of the Saidpur Hostel had confronted them and they had a row over some issue which I am not aware of. Before this incident, our students had a fall out with a group at Darbhanga House (part of the university that houses the postgraduate department). No sooner did the boys identify their targets, the fight started and many of our students were thrashed badly. When people started gathering, the attackers sensed trouble and one of them fired shots in the air and then shot Neeraj. There was panic and they took advantage of the situation and fled."

College principal Dharmshila Prasad had nothing much to say but express helplessness. "I have no clue about the incident. It is very serious, considering the fact that someone enters the college with a pistol. The campus is huge and there are porous areas through which anyone can enter.

Tenders will be invited soon for erect a boundary wall around the campus. But these things take time," she said.