LPU Punjab Violence: A Rape Allegation, A Campus Rampage And No Evidence To Back It

Punjab Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) found no material evidence to establish that a female student was raped at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Phagwara and found no evidence that could help identify the alleged victim, according to an affidavit submitted before the Punjab and Haryana High Court on October 30. The police filed a cancellation report in a Phagwara court on October 30, following the investigation. The case will formally close once the court accepts the report.

The findings come more than a month after allegations of rape circulated among students, triggering protests that escalated into arson, vandalism, looting and clashes with police on the university campus. The violence also led to a blockade of National Highway-44 and damage estimated at around Rs 30 crore to property on and around the campus.

The affidavit also details the separate investigation into the campus violence, naming 116 accused and identifying 33 alleged group leaders or instigators. Police have arrested 17 people in the LPU violence case.

Police file cancellation report after SIT finds no evidence

In its affidavit before the High Court, Inspector General of Police (Counter Intelligence) Ashish Choudhary said the SIT had examined CCTV footage and digital devices during the investigation. The Indian Express reported that the SIT examined footage from 14 CCTV cameras covering 3,000 hours over 10 days and recorded responses from around 800 female students living in different university hostels.

The SIT also obtained responses from around 50 hostel wardens, kitchen staff, security personnel and other employees, but none provided information to substantiate the allegation, according to the SIT report.

The cancellation report concerns only the FIR registered over the rape allegation and does not cover the three other FIRs relating to violence, property damage and the highway blockade.

The affidavit stated that the allegations were found to be "unfounded and false". It added that "no material evidence came on record which could suggest or establish the occurrence of rape" or help identify the alleged victim.

The SIT has concluded its investigation into the rape allegation, and the cancellation report covers only the FIR registered in connection with that allegation.

The investigation had earlier struggled to establish basic details of the alleged offence, including the identity and whereabouts of the woman said to have been assaulted and the identity of the accused.

In September, ThePrint reported that the police had examined more than 100 hours of CCTV footage and recorded statements from hundreds of students but had not found clues to the identity or whereabouts of the alleged victim.

DIG (Jalandhar Range) Naveen Singla told the publication that investigators had examined footage from three days before the alleged incident. "There is a CCTV camera on each floor and we have looked into the footage of each camera of girls hostel no. 3, and have not found any incriminating evidence of any man entering the premises," he said.

A police officer quoted anonymously by ThePrint described the difficulty facing investigators: "We have a unique situation where we don’t have any victim of the alleged offence and neither a suspect. What we do have is a strong belief among students that the offence took place."

Unverified allegation triggers protests and campus violence

Protests at LPU escalated on September 26–27 amid rumours that an outsider had raped a female student inside Girls' Hostel 3. The protests turned violent, with vandalism, arson and clashes with police. The message claimed that the incident had taken place on campus and that the university authorities had sent the alleged victim home instead of taking action.

According to The Indian Express, the five-line message circulated on a social media application under the heading "Rape by a male worker in girls hostel of LPU". It also alleged that the university had been ignoring incidents of suicide and rape. The message spread through student groups, followed by appeals asking students to gather near the university's main gate.

Students demanded action over the alleged assault and said they would not lift the highway blockade until they received a copy of the FIR. However, the protest escalated, with parts of the campus vandalised, objects set on fire and police vehicles damaged. Protesters also blocked the Jalandhar-Phagwara stretch of the national highway.

In September, The Indian Express reported that the Punjab Police had registered an FIR and promised an investigation by a Special Investigation Team. The university denied the rape allegation.

The situation subsequently turned violent, with police personnel facing stone-pelting and attacks involving glass bottles. The unrest also affected businesses inside the campus, with shops at the university's Uni Mall reportedly broken into and goods stolen.

According to the Hindustan Times, the police estimated losses at around Rs 30 crore to property on and around the university campus.

116 accused named in LPU violence case

While the rape investigation did not establish the alleged offence, the police investigation into the campus violence continued. The October 30 affidavit stated that 116 people had been nominated as accused in the LPU violence case, of whom 17 had been arrested.

Police identified 33 group leaders or alleged instigators, including four among those arrested. The affidavit also stated that 78 of the accused had been found to be involved in the robbery at the mall on the campus.

Separate cases were registered in connection with the blockade of the national highway and violence against police personnel. According to the Hindustan Times, 46 people were named in the FIR relating to the highway blockade, while another 46 were nominated in connection with violence against police personnel. Six accused had been arrested in these cases.

The Punjab Police also examined whether the two university incidents were connected, particularly after similarities emerged in the way rumours spread and protests escalated at both campuses.

According to the Hindustan Times, the police affidavit said the Chitkara University incident followed a spontaneous rumour after an ambulance was spotted on campus. The ambulance was linked to claims that two female students had died by suicide.

The LPU incident, however, had a different sequence. The affidavit stated that rumours about rape had been "circulating, simmering and gaining traction for a number of days before it actually escalated into a protest that turned violent".

An analysis of tower dump data showed that 24 mobile phones were active in the areas of both universities. Further examination established that the numbers belonged to Chitkara students who had left their campus during the protests and crossed the LPU area while travelling home.

The police said there was nothing to suggest that either incident followed from a common intention, link or conspiracy.

While the SIT has prepared a cancellation report in the rape case, the investigation into the violence, vandalism and alleged looting continues. The competent court will decide whether to accept the cancellation report.