Click to play videoNew Delhi: The Lucknow University is a hub of crime where narcotics, arms and prostitution rackets thrive, the institute’s Vice-Chancellor R P Singh said on Friday.
Students accused of crime and rowdies ruled the university, R P Singh told the Allahabad High Court.
He requested the Court to direct the Uttar Pradesh Government to increase security on the campus and speed up pending criminal cases against students.
"In the employees' quarters and hostels, around 300 people are living illegally. They have been here for long and their number is increasing," Singh told CNN-IBN.
"A woman who was evicted from her house came to officials and complained. When we asked her who she was and whether a relative of her worked for the university, she said that she lived on the campus illegally. Later we found that she was involved in flesh trade," he alleged.
Singh asked the court to direct the UP Government to deploy adequate security and expedite pending criminal cases against students. This was needed to get hostels—the major problem centres—evacuated and help innocent students.
Singh’s statements before the court are in complete contrast to UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav’s claim that the university was peaceful.
Singh ordered shut down the university sine die and hostels cleared after shut after CNN-IBN reported on December 7 how student leaders accused of crimes were creating terror on the campus using gunmen provided by the state government.
Student leaders are against union elections being held according to the Lyngdoh committee’s recommendations. Elections were postponed for a month after the protests.
The Uttar Pradesh unanimously adopted a resolution against Singh for his decision and Yadav described his allegations as lies.
Yadav has alleged that Singh was a "dictator" and that the university was closed to defame his government and spread the "canard" that Lucknow was unsafe.
"What is wrong with the law and order situation in Lucknow? Is it so bad that the university and degree colleges should have been closed?" he said.
Yadav has alleged Singh had not told him or senior officials about the situation on the campus.
The High Court has however ordered the Uttar Pradesh Police to ensure that all 38,000 students of the university vacated their hostels and make sure that vandalism on the campus ends.
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