The Shyam Lal College assault has raised questions over campus safety and the college administration’s response to complaints of physical violence. The incident, as described by the victim Paranjaya Dwivedi, and a witness, allegedly escalated from a fight involving four to five individuals to a larger confrontation involving several dozen students.
The incident reportedly took place at approximately 5:30 PM on 7 September 2026, outside the college canteen. According to Paranjaya, the confrontation began when a fight broke out involving four to five individuals. A confidential eyewitness recalled that Paranjaya had been inside with them shortly before a fight broke out, describing the use of belts and physical blows, including blows to the back of the head and face, as well as hair-pulling. According to them, students took Paranjaya’s bag and phone during the confrontation.
As an anonymous eyewitness notes, the security guards’ intervention briefly eased the situation; however the fight escalated again when an individual called for more people. They estimated that 25 to 30 students subsequently approached Paranjaya, pinned him against a wall, and continued physically assaulting him. It was further alleged that the group later pursued Paranjaya as he was being taken towards the gate, describing the use of wipers during the assault, and claiming one had broken during the altercation. The attempted use of a “rusted rod” was also reported, but the security guards intervened and removed it.
Beyond the incident itself, Paranjaya made several broader allegations concerning student politics and election campaigning at SLC. He claimed that physical altercations were common during campaigning and that the college witnessed at least two bloody fights on an average day during such periods, also referring to an earlier period when, according to him, the college gate was left bloodied. He mentioned that students who support candidates sometimes engage in violence in the name of politics, even when they themselves are not politically active. “I really respect student politics, but it has a very dark side,” he said. He further attested that students had approached him suggesting retaliation over legal action, and according to him, this reflected a loss of trust in the college administration and the police. He also claimed that the students had previously reported receiving death threats, and women opposing the violent groups allegedly faced rape threats.
Another eyewitness, who is reportedly active in the college’s student politics asserted that the students’ union had no involvement whatsoever in the altercation, and that it primarily comprised students of the evening college, dubbing them the “badmash” students of the institution. This account conflicts with Paranjaya’s description of the incident as tied to student politics and election campaigning. The confrontation was reported to have continued until the teachers and people from the evening office arrived, after which the group reportedly disappeared.
Paranjaya stated that the college administration and police had pressured victims not to file First Information Reports (FIRs), and that the administration was unwilling to take action without a formal complaint, and that this contributed to a lack of accountability. Further allegations were made against the security personnel’s inability to control the group during the incident, despite the presence of guards and teachers. According to him, the administration had failed to develop a permanent solution to the recurring violence.
Paranjaya claimed that the administration’s first question to him after facing violence was why he had been present in the evening college when he was a student of the morning college. He also referred to other incidents of violence that he said had taken place around the same period, claiming that another student had suffered severe injuries to the ear, while a separate student had allegedly nearly lost an eye in an attack. The circumstances and connections between these incidents remain unclear.
The Shyam Lal College assault comes to light after multiple such altercations have been reported at SLC, the most recent one being a violent brawl in April 2026, on the day of SLC’s annual cultural festival, where students reportedly resorted to using sticks to beat each other up. According to the Students’ Federation of India on Instagram, a group of 50 students allegedly attacked five female activists campaigning peacefully at Shyam Lal College. The evidence and accounts shared by the eyewitnesses and Paranjaya form the basis of this report; questions remain regarding the action taken by the college administration.
Image Credits: Paranjaya Dwivedi
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