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Police in Punjab registered a rape case against an unidentified individual and formed a seven-member special investigation team after a rumour that a female student was assaulted in one of the girls’ hostels at Lovely Professional University spread through student messaging groups on 27 September. The university in a statement described the claims as false, baseless and fabricated by anti-social elements seeking to tarnish its image, according to registrar Monica Gulati. Protesters blocked the Jalandhar-Phagwara stretch of National Highway 44, set vehicles ablaze and damaged campus property during clashes that continued into the early hours, The Tribune newspaper reported. University authorities subsequently suspended classes for 10 days, postponed mid-term examinations and encouraged students to return home after consulting their parents, a move that triggered a rapid emptying of hostels as hundreds of families arrived to collect their children.
Lovely Professional University officials released a video featuring three female students from the named hostel room who stated that no such incident had occurred in their accommodation and that they had lived there uneventfully for two months, the institution said in an announcement on its social media channels. Those same students later told reporters that the university had scripted their statements, edited the footage without consent and posted it anyway, according to coverage in The Times of India. Police Commissioner Satinder Singh stated that all hostels had been inspected with no evidence of disturbance found, adding that large-scale deployments of around 2,000 officers remained in place at every campus gate to maintain order. The episode echoes a similar outbreak of unrest 27 hours earlier at Chitkara University 140 kilometres away, where unverified social media posts about two missing female students also led to protests, The Indian Express noted in its reporting.
National Crime Records Bureau data shows India recorded 31,516 rape cases in 2022, part of a total exceeding 445,000 crimes against women that year and a figure that often amplifies public anxiety when campus safety rumours surface. A survey of more than 500 women in higher education institutions found that 10 percent reported experiencing sexual assault on campus, with over 40 percent of survivors keeping the matter to themselves due to fears of character assassination or institutional backlash, according to the study published by The Wire Science. Lovely Professional University, which has grown from modest beginnings in 2005 to a 600-acre residential campus enrolling students from across India and abroad, has faced additional questions over its handling of a Telangana student’s recent suicide and broader demands for improved hostel conditions, The Times of India reported in a detailed timeline of the unrest.
Protesting students also raised concerns about the death of the Telangana student and alleged administrative inaction on multiple safety issues, claims the university has rejected as part of the same campaign of misinformation, according to statements issued by its administration. Punjab Police officials confirmed that preliminary checks found no supporting evidence for the rape allegation or linked suicide, yet the special investigation team continues to examine all circulating claims, a senior officer told Al Jazeera. The rapid departure of students created chaotic scenes at nearby railway stations in Jalandhar and Phagwara as families sought to transport their children home, The Tribune added in its coverage of the aftermath. University spokespersons emphasised that those remaining on campus had been instructed to stay inside hostels and avoid any involvement in the disturbances for their own safety.
The unrest at the institution has drawn attention to recurring patterns of social media-driven protests at large private universities in Punjab, where unverified posts about female student safety can escalate quickly into violence, according to an analysis by The Indian Express. Police have urged parents to rely on official updates rather than circulating rumours, a message repeated by Jalandhar police officials in public briefings. Lovely Professional University has committed to reviewing its security protocols, including enhanced monitoring in hostel areas, the registrar stated during meetings with student representatives. The special investigation team is expected to submit initial findings in the coming days as calm gradually returned to the campus following the peak of protests on 28 September.
