The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Students protest SBM security staff assault

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 27, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Students protest SBM security staff assault

Staff Reporter

— Photo: Sampath Kumar G.P.

SHOW OF ANGER: Bangalore University students protesting in front of State Bank of Mysore on Kempe Gowda Road in Bangalore on Wednesday.

BANGALORE: Triggering angry protests from Bangalore University Commerce Department students, security staff of the State Bank of Mysore (SBM) head office here allegedly abused a group of girl students and assaulted another group returning after lodging a complaint with the bank management on Wednesday. One of the security guards allegedly brandished his rifle at the students.

Trouble started around 11 a.m. over a trivial issue. Three Master of Finance and Accounting (MFA) students — Nirmala, Kavitha and Sumant — had just paid their examination fee at the bank counter and were returning with 10 blank challans when an armed security guard stopped them at the gate.

Asked about the excess challans, the students explained they were for their friends back in college and the receipts had to be stamped by their department chairman. At this, the guard reportedly snatched the challans and abused them in Kannada.

The three rushed to their department in Central College, and came back with their friends and two lecturers, Muniraju and Ramachandra Gowda. While returning after lodging a complaint with the bank’s Deputy General Manager, the guards again confronted them. But the verbal exchange soon degenerated with one of the guards allegedly hitting a student, Harish, with his rifle butt. “We did not go there to commit bank robbery. Six people attacked Harish,” recalled his classmate later. “Even the bank staff did not support us,” he said.

As the guard brandished the rifle, some students rushed to Harish’s defence and in the melee that ensued, the weapon broke. The students later handed over the parts to the police.

As news spread, over 150 students from the department converged outside the university Vice-Chancellor’s office on the Central College campus and shouted slogans against the State Bank management. The action soon shifted to the Mysore Bank Circle, when the vociferous students marched to the bank, demanding immediate action against the guilty security personnel. But they were stopped at the gates by a police team, alerted by the bank management.

Students complained that they were often being treated badly by the security. “They have a bad attitude. They used pretty vulgar language against us,” said Sumant. “There was a threat to get us arrested. But a woman staffer intervened and allowed us to go,” said another student. Sumant said the bank management had no problem with the students taking more challans. “They usually allow us to take two to three challans. We are all perplexed why the security staff had to intervene, and snatch the challans,” he wondered.

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