LPU Rape Claim Sparks Violent Protests at Indian University

A claim that a female student was raped inside a girls' hostel at Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Indian Punjab has led to two days of angry and violent protests. The university has shut classes for 10 days, postponed midterm exams and told students they can go home. Police have registered a rape case against an unknown person, while the university says the rape never happened.

LPU is one of India's biggest private universities. Its campus is in Phagwara, in Kapurthala district, right next to National Highway 44 between Jalandhar and Phagwara. The area is in the same Punjab region that lies across the border from Lahore.

How the Protests Started

The trouble began at around 1am on Sunday, September 27, near Girls Hostel 3. Messages had spread on social media and among students that a female student living in a university hostel was raped by an outsider. Some Indian reports say the alleged incident took place on September 24. Students gathered and demanded action, asking how an outsider could get inside a girls' hostel.

By Sunday evening the protest had turned violent. Protesters threw stones and bricks at police, and police used lathi charge and tear gas to push them back. Several vehicles, including police vehicles, were set on fire, and part of the main gate was burned. Both students and police officers were injured. Indian news agency ANI reported that at least five students were detained and a sharp weapon was recovered from them.

Students also blocked National Highway 44, one of the busiest roads in the region. The blockade lasted nearly 21 hours, leaving long lines of stranded vehicles, before traffic started moving again after midnight. Videos from the campus went viral. In one, a student is seen standing on an old Indian Air Force MiG 23 jet kept on display near the gate. In others, about 10 students are seen on top of army tanks also displayed there.

What the University and Police Say

LPU has strongly denied the claim. Registrar Monica Gulati said there was no truth in the rumours and called them false, baseless and fabricated. The university blamed "anti-social elements" for spreading them. It also released a video of three female students from a hostel room saying nothing had happened in their room. A day later, the same three students said the university had cut their video and posted it without their permission, and that they were now being abused online.

Police have taken a different path. They registered an FIR against an unknown person on a complaint from students and formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT). The team is led by the Superintendent of Police for Phagwara and includes a woman inspector and student representatives. Investigators are checking CCTV footage, forensic material and phone call records. Police have said that so far they have found no evidence to support the claim. No victim or accused has been named, and no arrest has been made. Indian law also bans publishing the name of a woman in a rape case.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann ordered strict action and sent the province's police chief, DGP Gaurav Yadav, to the campus on Monday. Yadav said the trouble began with late night rumours, and that police chose to use minimum force. He said walkie-talkies were found on the campus, which pointed to outsiders taking part in the violence. He promised that anyone involved in a crime would face the law, "no matter how big a person they are". He also said students had asked for only female staff in girls' hostels.

Internet services in and around the campus were suspended from Sunday midnight. The Punjab State Women Commission has asked for a full report, including the FIR, the progress of the investigation and hostel security details, by September 30.

The Air Force Officer Claim Is Not Confirmed

Some posts online, and some reports shared in Pakistan, have claimed that the accused is an Indian Air Force officer and that the Indian government stopped media from reporting his name. propaknews.com could not find this claim in any police statement or in reports by major Indian newspapers and news agencies. These reports describe the accused only as an outsider, and the case is filed against an unknown person. Until police say more, the Air Force claim remains unconfirmed.

Fake content has been a big part of this story. India's official fact check unit, PIB Fact Check, said a viral video claiming a police officer had linked a senior politician's relative to the incident was edited with AI and was fake. The matter has also become political. A leader of India's ruling BJP accused Punjab's AAP government of sending troublemakers to the campus before a rally by Home Minister Amit Shah in Jalandhar on September 30, but gave no evidence. LPU's founder and chancellor, Ashok Mittal, is a BJP member of India's upper house of parliament.

What Happens Next

Regular classes are suspended from September 28 for 10 days. Midterm exams are postponed until further notice, and the university says new dates will be shared on its online student portal. Students can travel home after talking to their parents, while those who stay have been told to remain inside their hostels. Many students left the campus early on Monday under heavy police presence.

The SIT's findings will decide what comes next. If the claim is proven, the pressure on the university over hostel safety will grow. If it is not, police say they will go after the people who spread false messages and those who damaged property.

A Story Pakistan Has Seen Before

The events at LPU look very similar to what happened in Pakistani Punjab in October 2024. Social media posts claimed that a female student had been raped at a Punjab College campus in Lahore. Students protested in Lahore, Rawalpindi and other cities, police used force, and hundreds of people were arrested for vandalism. The Punjab government's inquiry committee and police said they found no evidence of the rape. A later fact finding mission by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said the claim could not be proven either way without forensic evidence, but it also criticised the use of force against students and the slow response of the college.

In both cases, fast spreading social media posts and a lack of trust in college management turned a single claim into mass unrest within hours. For students and parents in Pakistan, the LPU story is another reminder of two things. Complaints about safety on campuses must be taken seriously and investigated quickly. At the same time, unverified posts should not be shared as fact before police and courts have done their work.