Punjab Police announced the arrests as part of a broader operation that raided several locations across Jammu and Kashmir to track individuals linked to the September 27‑28 riot at Lovely Professional University. The crackdown followed video evidence of masked students breaking windows, setting police vehicles ablaze, and looting campus shops, a disturbance that shut down the Delhi‑Amritsar highway for 15 hours.
The campus siege began after an unverified Reddit post claimed a student was raped and subsequently committed suicide. LPU administration dismissed the allegation as fabricated, calling it a smear campaign aimed at tarnishing the university’s reputation. The protest quickly escalated from a demonstration to widespread vandalism, injuring several police officers and journalists.
Sahil Singh, a 19‑year‑old LPU enrollee from Koti village, Doda, and Antariksh, 18, were apprehended by joint J&K and Punjab police units in Pouni Chak. They were identified through facial‑recognition analysis of surveillance footage and tower‑dump data that traced the videos to their mobile phones. Punjab Police Director Ramesh Kumar said the evidence was “conclusive” and the suspects were charged under the Indian Penal Code for rioting and property damage.
A third LPU student, Farhat Dev from Kishtwar, fled Phagwara and is still at large. Police have intensified the search after Dev, who issued a statement distancing himself from the violence, was reportedly hiding at a relative’s residence in Doda. The police are coordinating with local authorities to locate him before he can escape.
The arrested students are slated to appear before the district court on October 5, where bail hearings will determine whether they remain in custody. Meanwhile, LPU has suspended classes for ten days and postponed mid‑term examinations, citing security concerns. The campus remains under heightened police surveillance as authorities work to restore order and investigate the incident.