Protest erupts at IIT-BHU as student molested, stripped by bike-borne men
Banaras Hindu University (BHU) students claimed outside elements were involved in the incident and demanded that outsiders be banned from entering the campus.
A female student was allegedly molested and stripped by motorcycle-borne men while she was walking with a male friend during the late Wednesday hours on the IIT-BHU campus. Hundreds of students at the IIT-BHU staged a protest near Rajputana Hostel on Thursday following the alleged incident, demanding enhanced security measures and an entry ban on outsiders.
According to a complaint lodged by the woman, she was out with a friend on Wednesday night. They were near the Karman Baba temple when three men came there on a motorcycle and forcibly took her to a corner and gagged her after separating her from her friend.
The accused then stripped the woman, made a video of her and clicked photos. They let her go after 15 minutes and took her phone number, the complaint stated.
An FIR (First Information Report) has been registered against three unidentified individuals based on a complaint filed by the victim. The local police have initiated an investigation into the matter.
Reacting to the incident, Congress said, “This is the condition of a prestigious institute of the country. UP CM Yogi trumpets this law and order situation, where a girl student is molested inside the university.”
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said in a post, “Are BHU campuses and even top institutions like IITs not safe now? Is it no longer possible for a girl student in the Prime Minister's constituency to walk fearlessly inside her own educational institution?”
Abhay Singh, the secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) unit at BHU, along with its members, joined the protest and called for the swift identification of the accused and the enforcement of strict legal action against them.
The IIT-BHU administration, meanwhile, has decided to implement a new security measure. They announced that all barricades within the campus will remain closed from 10pm to 5am, aiming to create a safer environment for staff and students.
"In order to ensure a safe and secure environment in the campus for staff and students, all barricades in the institutes shall henceforth be closed from 10 PM to 5 AM," stated the IIT-BHU administration in a notice issued by the Registrar.