LPU Campus Protest: LPU Campus Tense After Unverified Rape and Suicide Claims Go Viral
Unverified social media claims about a female student triggered protests at LPU, with students blocking roads and damaging property before police moved in to control the situation.
LPU Campus Protest: Tension spread across Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Phagwara, Punjab, late Saturday after an unverified message about an alleged sexual assault and suicide began circulating on social media.
The claims quickly reached student groups and triggered a large gathering near a girls’ hostel. Reports from the campus said around 2,000 students joined the protest. The demonstration later turned disruptive, with students blocking the Jalandhar Phagwara National Highway and damaging property inside the university. Some objects were also set on fire.
Police reached the campus as the situation escalated and worked to clear the affected areas. Officials said they had not received a complaint confirming the alleged rape and that protesters were unable to provide details that could establish the identity of an alleged victim.
Police also said information had been received about a woman who died by suicide near the university’s agriculture department several days earlier. However, authorities said they had found no evidence connecting that death with the sexual assault claims circulating online.
The situation was further complicated by different versions of the message spreading across social media. Some posts linked an alleged assault with the death of a student, while others made separate claims about an incident inside a hostel. Police and university officials have not confirmed those allegations.
LPU authorities have also rejected the claims circulating online. A university official described the reports about a student suicide as false and said there was no confirmed case matching the messages being shared among students.
The unrest led to damage to parts of the university campus. Videos and reports from the scene showed damaged window panes and other property, while some areas witnessed fires during the protest. The highway blockade also disrupted traffic outside the university.
Police and university representatives have been speaking with students as authorities work to establish what actually happened. For now, the alleged sexual assault and the claimed connection with a student’s death remain unverified.
The incident has also highlighted how quickly unconfirmed information can spread through student groups and social media, turning an unclear situation into a large campus protest within hours.
