Students raised security concerns and accused the college management of inaction.
Published Jan 02, 2025 | 9:36 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 02, 2025 | 9:36 PM
Breach of privacy in girls hostel washroom leads to protest in Hyderabad engineering College
Students of the CMR College of Engineering and Technology at Medchal, an outer suburb of Hyderabad in Telangana, are protesting against the alleged inaction of college authorities after a hidden camera was found in the washroom of the women’s hostel.
Male students and ABVP joined the protesting hostel residents, who raised security concerns in the wake of the sexual assault on a female student on Chennai’s Anna University campus, and rising crimes against women in Telangana.
In September last, a similar case of hidden camera was reported from the Gudlavalleru Engineering College in Andhra Pradesh’s Krishna district. It was then alleged that 300 sensitive video clips of female students were circulated.
The students have also lodged a police complaint. They alleged that the incident happened around 1 am on Wednesday, 1 January. The college management had organised a DJ party on New Year’s Eve.
Around 1 am, a student went to the washroom on the ground floor of Hostel-2 and noticed the camera on the window. “She immediately informed the warden, who did not take action,” the complaint read.
Following the inaction, the students protested, forcing the warden to take action. The complaint further detailed security lapses that allowed men to roam the hostel premises even past midnight.
The complaint further accused the management of apathy, saying the security issues were not addressed.
Speaking to South First, a student said the management placed mobile signal jammers to block communication. “There was inaction on the part of the management and they even went as far as to place jammers on the campus,” the student, who did not wish to be identified fearing reprisal, said. She added that the police were also present on the campus on New Year’s Eve.
Medchal police officers said they had confiscated the phone of the entire staff and recorded their fingerprints.
“They are running their fingerprints with the ones found near the ventilator to check for a match,” an officer told South First.
“The investigation is still underway. However, if we find that the management was negligent, they will also face action,” the police said.
The students were still protesting on the campus as a consensus could not be reached in talks with the management. The students were demanding no male hostel staff, immediate replacement of the staff, police action against the miscreant, better grievance redressal mechanisms, and CCTV upgrades.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
