Overview
- Students at LPU in Phagwara erupted into large protests that turned violent after an unverified social‑media message alleging a rape circulated, with footage showing campus vandalism, fires and a blockade of National Highway‑44.
- Police say the unrest began late on Saturday and continued into Sunday, and they registered a rape FIR against an unidentified person based on student complaints while describing the circulating claims as unverified.
- A specially constituted SIT is carrying out forensic tests, CCTV and phone‑data analysis and includes student representatives in the probe, and officials say preliminary checks of the hostel room cited by protesters have not corroborated the allegation.
- LPU has denied the incident, released a video of hostel residents denying the claim, suspended regular classes for 10 days and postponed midterm exams, and police have assessed property damage and deployed a large security presence around campus.
- The episode follows a near‑identical student unrest at Chitkara University the previous day and raises fresh concerns about how viral rumours spread on campus networks and the risks they pose to student safety, traffic and local law and order.