Ravenshaw University

Cuttack, Jan. 15: Ravenshaw University students’ union leader Harishankar Rout was arrested today for allegedly attacking journalists who had gone to cover the campus violence at the varsity that left two local and one Afghan student injured on Thursday.

Rout, a final year postgraduate political science student, had allegedly instigated his supporters that went on rampage following a clash with the Afghan students.

Trouble had erupted on the campus after the students of New PG Hostel, who were staging a protest on the campus clashed with foreign students who wanted to go out of the premises.

Three students, including one BBA student from Afghanistan Esmaicss, were critically injured.

Following the reports of the violence, a large number of journalists had rushed to the varsity to cover the incident. However, the students’ union leader and his supporters attacked them.

Later, the five injured newsmen along with other city-based journalists union had lodged a police complaint against Rout for the assault on them.

Rout has been arrested under Section 341 (wrongful restraint), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 379 (snatching, theft), 294 (obscene act, using slang here), 427 (ransacking), 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC.

“We have arrested Rout on the basis of the FIR lodged by the journalists today,” said inspector in-charge of Malgodown police station S Mallick.

Earlier, two representatives from the Embassy of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, led by Mohammad Azim Sahak, had met the Ravenshaw University officials and DCP Amitendra Nath Sinha over the security of foreign students on the campus yesterday.

Police have made elaborate security measures and adequate force has been deployed at the hotels and other private accommodations where the foreign students, mostly from Afghanistan, are staying.