South Calcutta Law College reopens under tight security after gang rape case

NEW DELHI: South Calcutta Law College reopened on Monday amid heavy security after remaining closed for over a week following the gang rape of a student on campus. Vice Principal Nayna Chatterjee said only BA LLB students of the first semester who did not fill out their examination forms have been asked to come on the first day after reopening.

Senior officers of the Kolkata Police were overseeing security at the campus as private guards thoroughly checked the ID cards of students going in. Around 100 students, many accompanied by their parents, turned up as the gates reopened. Sasanka Dhara, father of a first-semester student, said he has decided to accompany his son to the college on every exam date till the situation normalises.

Parents concerned over campus safety

"We are scared about our children's safety," he said. The decision to reopen the campus, in Kasba in the southern part of the city, was taken after the Kolkata Police gave its go-ahead, a college official said. The students' union room and the security guard's room of the college have been sealed by the police for investigation, he said. Students have been asked to follow their usual class timetable from July 8, he added.

A first-year student of the college was raped by an alumnus and two of her seniors -- all affiliated to the TMC's students' wing, on June 25. The college was closed on June 29 amid protests over the incident.