Prof's death: ABVP leaders held on murder charge

Bhopal, Aug 31(UNI) Police today made a headway in the probe into the death of a Ujjain college professor in students violence, with the arrest of two ABVP leaders on murder charge.

ABVP's Madhya Pradesh unit President Shashi Ranjan Singh Akela and its Organising Secretary Vimal Tomar were handed over to CID custody today after Judicial Magistrate R C Maria admitted the CID plea to arrest them on the charge of murdering Prof H S Sabharwal.

Both surrendered before the police yesterday and were remanded to judicial custody.

CID officials are interrogating the ABVP leaders and more arrests are likely.

Highly placed police sources said the arrests were effected on the basis of eye-witness accounts and video clippings of the violence at Madhav College after postponement of students union elections on August 26.

The sources, however, clarified that no time limit had been fixed for the CID probe, by a team headed by IG M P Dwivedi.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, facing flak for alleged attempt to save ABVP leaders, ordered the CID probe even as the district authorities had ordered a magisterial inquiry into the episode.

Students, enraged over postponement of elections, assaulted Prof Sabharwal, causing his immediate death, and Election Officer Prof M L Nath, whose face was also blackened.

As many as 23 Congress and NSUI workers, who allegedly indulged in vandalism at the college during Ujjain bandh on Monday, were also in judicial remand.

Death of Prof Sabharwal in students violence drew countrywide criticism. Former principal of Madhav College Shachindra Upadhyaya died of shock on Sunday after hearing about the maltreatment meted out by students to his former colleagues.

Congress and NSUI had launched agitations across the state to protest the delay in arresting ABVP workers and demanded CBI probe into the incident.

Prof Sabharwal's son Himanshu also demanded a CBI probe into the violence.

UNI Team-SP YA KN1544