A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today directed the State to clarify whether the incident referred to in the social media post had actually occurred. The Bench also observed orally during the hearing that social media posts had become a “nuisance”.
The post, circulated among LPU students, alleged that a worker had raped a girl student at the campus and that the university had subsequently sent her home. It further claimed that the girl had died by suicide.
The State told the court that the matter was still under investigation and, at this stage, it could not conclusively state that the alleged incident had not occurred.
The Bench sought clarity on both possibilities—whether the alleged incident had taken place and, if so, what action had been taken, and, if not, what action had been initiated against those responsible for circulating the post. The court directed that the status report, to be filed under the signatures of the Commissioner of Police, should also explain what followed the circulation of the post and whether steps were taken to have it removed.
The matter will next be heard on October 8. The petition seeking a CBI probe was filed by LPU student Ravi Raj. He alleged that the viral post and subsequent WhatsApp messages led nearly 2,000 students to gather outside hostel GH-3 before a section of them blocked National Highway-44 between Phagwara and Jalandhar around 2 am.
The petitioner alleged that violence subsequently escalated, with buildings being set on fire, property vandalised, security personnel attacked and goods allegedly looted. He further claimed that outsiders entered the campus and that some were armed with weapons, allegations that remain part of the petition and are yet to be established.
The petitioner also questioned the police response, alleging that authorities were aware of the gathering but failed to prevent the blockade, arson and vandalism. He pointed to what he described as conflicting police statements regarding the original rape-suicide claim. While senior police officials reportedly described the allegations as rumours, the petitioner said an FIR was subsequently registered under Section 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita in connection with an alleged rape at hostel GH-3.
The petition also referred to the earlier unrest at Chitkara University, Rajpura, where unverified social media claims about two female students allegedly triggered protests before the university and police denied that the reported deaths had occurred.
Senior advocate Gaurav Chopra appeared for the petitioner, while Additional Solicitor-General Satya Pal Jain represented the Union government, and Senior Advocate and Additional Advocate-General Chanchal K Singla appeared for Punjab.
