In one of the deadliest instances of campus violence in West Bengal in recent times, a student was lynched inside the classroom of a college in West Medinipur district. Krishnaprasad Jana, a second year student in Sabang Sajanikanta Mahavidyalaya, was killed after he was hit with an iron rod. Activists of the Trinamool Congress Chatra Parishad (TMCP), the students’ wing of the ruling party in the State, are allegedly responsible for the murder. Its president, Ashok Rudra, however, neither confirmed nor denied the allegation.
The parishad’s cadres reportedly asked the supporters of Chatra Parishad (students’ wing of the Congress) to felicitate a Trinamool Minister Soumen Kumar Mohapatra, who was in Sabang block to monitor the flood situation.
When Jana and other Chatra Parishad members resisted, he was allegedly hit on the head with a rod, after a minor scuffle. He died on his way to hospital. Jana was a student of the arts faculty and “appeared in the Part 1 examination some time back,” the Principal of the college Kanailal Padiya told The Hindu . However, Mr. Padiya could not confirm if TMCP cadres had hit Jana.
“Around 12.30 p.m., I heard that the union room was locked, which was unusual. I sent some teachers and they came back to report that the students could be seen in the campus with sticks and iron rods,” Mr. Padiya said. Soon after, Mr. Padiya reached the union room, and he saw Jana being carried out of the union room in “a battered condition”.
“After sometime, I came to know that he had died,” said Mr. Padiya. However, earlier in the day, the principal said he was locked inside his room when reports of the scuffle reached him. As a result, he could not identify the students responsible for the alleged murder. District police officials refused to comment on the matter.
While campus violence is on the rise in West Bengal, for the first time a student was lynched in the classroom.
CM condemns incident
While condemning the incident, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the students’ union in the college was controlled by the Chatra Parishad and not TMCP.
“It is an unfortunate incident. There was a scuffle among students when one got hit on the head with a (cricket) bat and died. Police will take strong action,” she said.
Published - August 07, 2015 07:09 pm IST
