Give my word that NIT Srinagar students will be unharmed: Deputy CM

New Delhi: With the National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Srinagar becoming a focal point of controversy and furore following the lathicharge on students by the police, Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Friday assured that the students at the varsity are safe and will be unharmed, while asserting that those responsible for attacking the students will not be spared.

Speaking to ANI, he said that the controversy surrounding the issue of 'Kashmiri versus non-Kashmiri students' was redundant as there was no such issue prevalent.

"NIT is an institution and the BJP believes that there should not be any political interference there, that's why the HRD is dealing with their academic and other issues including their safety. A magisterial enquiry is underway into the lathicharge on students and report will come in 15 days, following which all those police officials responsible will be punished," Singh said.

Assuring complete security, he added that troops of CRPF and senior officers from the Jammu and Kashmir Police were deployed inside the campus and were constantly monitoring the situation.

"As a Deputy Chief Minister, I assure the complete safety of the students and I am taking a personal interest in the matter. I had gone to Srinagar yesterday and I will be going there today as well to take stick of the situation," he added.

The BJP leader also said that the students must not be worried as the institution belongs to them and also appealed to other parties to not politicize the issue as the state was a sensitive area and that the issue must be contained solely to that of national interest.

Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Smriti Irani had earlier said that her ministry officials are in the varsity campus to ensure that all of their issues are looked into while asserting that safety of students was her prime concern.

A fact-finding team of the HRD Ministry arrived at the institute's campus on Wednesday for an on the spot assessment of the situation. The two-member team comprising a Director level and a Deputy Secretary level officer also spoke to the students to get their version of the events.

Tension simmered at the NIT campus last week after India lost the World T20 semi-final to the West Indies. Some engineering students from outside the state claimed Kashmiri students had chanted anti-India slogans and burst firecrackers after India's defeat.