In a fresh twist amid raging protests at Punjab’s Lovely Professional University (LPU), three female students who had earlier denied rumours of a rape incident on campus have now released another video, claiming that their previous statements were scripted.
In the latest video, the students alleged that they were instructed by university authorities on what to say and that the video was later edited and posted on social media without their consent.
“[LPU administration] told us to record all this and say it for them. We were just instructed to say that students and others were bothering us. Half of our video was trimmed and posted on Instagram, about which we had no idea. Our consent was not taken. This was done without informing us, and now we are facing unnecessary abuse,” one of the students said.
Protests rocked the LPU campus on Sunday after some students alleged that a female student staying there had been raped by a plumber three days earlier. They also claimed that the hostel warden had been informed about the alleged incident but no action was taken.
The LPU management, however, maintained that there was no truth to the “rumours”. Registrar Monica Gulati said some anti-social elements were spreading “false, baseless and fabricated” allegations.
The university had also released a video statement featuring three female students from Room No. 504 of the hostel, in which they said that no rape incident had taken place and that they had been staying there for the past two months.
Now, the fresh claims made by the same students could put further pressure on the university management, which has already suspended classes for 10 days and postponed mid-term examinations after the protests turned violent.
In the new video, one of the students is heard saying: “We have no involvement in this. A random room was picked and named. We have absolutely no role in this. Please leave us alone.”
Violence broke out on the campus on Sunday evening, with protesting students vandalising property, pelting stones at police vehicles and blocking a national highway.
A large police force led by ADGP M.F. Farooqui entered the LPU campus, following which police said the situation had been brought under control.
Police have registered a rape case against an unknown person even as the university has maintained that the allegations were “rumours”.
