Students staying in hostel of Jeppiaar Engineering College in Semmenchery went on rampage on the campus on Sunday evening allegedly protesting rules imposed on them by the college and the recent transfer of the institution's director.
Police sources said tension sparked among over 1,000 men hostellers on the campus around 7 p.m., who broke glass windows of 250 rooms of the hostel. The students dragged mattresses and other items outside the hostel block and set them on fire.
“A computer lab on the ground floor was set ablaze. Many computers and electronic equipment were destroyed. Physics and chemistry labs nearby were also damaged,” said a police officer.
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The college officials alerted the police who later reached the campus and fire tenders from Siruseri fire station were brought in to extinguish the fire mainly inside the computer lab, sources added.
Senior police officials, including Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Shakeel Akhter and Joint Commissioner of Police (South Zone) P. Sakthivel reached the spot and pacified the students. Over 100 police personnel were stationed on the campus to avoid any student repercussion. The agitators complained to the officers about strict rules being thrust on them, including the ban on use of cell phones. Students also expressed displeasure over the recent shift of the college director, N. Marie Wilson, sources said.