LPU Violence: 89 Named, 17 Arrested; Police Trace Student Behind Reddit Postਐਲਪੀਯੂ ਹਿੰਸਾ: 89 ਨਾਮਜ਼ਦ, 17 ਗ੍ਰਿਫ਼ਤਾਰ; ਰੈਡਿਟ ਪੋਸਟ ਪਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥਣ ਦੀ ਪਛਾਣ

Phagwara police have now named 89 youths, including more than 80 Lovely Professional University (LPU) students, in cases over the campus violence, and say 17 people have been arrested so far, according to police sources. Separately, Kapurthala SSP Gaurav Toora said police have traced the first-year student behind the Reddit post that fed the unrest.

The arrests come as the Punjab and Haryana High Court was due to hear the case on Thursday, October 8, 2026, with the state expected to file a status report.

How many have been arrested in the LPU violence case?

Police sources said 17 youths, 15 of them LPU students, are in custody. Those held come from Bihar, Maharashtra, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, and the police list includes a juvenile and two Phagwara residents who are not students.

On Thursday, two more students were given one-day police remand, while two others were sent to 14 days' judicial custody in Kapurthala jail, The Tribune reported. Police said the identifications rest on technical and digital evidence from the campus, and teams are raiding in several states.

Who was behind the viral post?

SSP Toora said the student who put out the contested message has been identified and is being questioned. According to Punjabi Jagran, Kapurthala police obtained technical details from Reddit's US headquarters and traced the IP address used for the upload.

Reports say that in her statement to the special investigation team, the student said she wrote the post on hearsay and wanted only to share her opinion. The post was uploaded twice, on September 24 and 26, and later deleted, but not before it spread across social media platforms. Police are still examining her statement and motive. We are not naming her.

What set off the violence?

Unverified reports of a sexual assault on a woman student by an outsider on campus drew a large crowd. The protest turned violent, with allegations of vandalism, arson, stone-throwing at police and damage to police vehicles; the crowd later reached the Amritsar-Delhi highway (NH-44). The university has denied the rape reports. Police registered a case against an unidentified person and formed a special investigation team.

Three FIRs were registered on September 28 on complaints from police personnel, under sections including attempt to murder, obstructing public servants, robbery and damage to public property, along with National Highways Act provisions. Two were filed at Phagwara Sadar and one at Satnampura police station.

What happens next?

Police say more arrests could follow depending on the evidence and the role of each person identified. All allegations are police claims; the accused have not been tried in court.

Why were 89 people named?

Police say they identified suspects from technical and digital evidence gathered at the campus after the violence.

Who has been arrested in the LPU case?

Seventeen youths, including 15 LPU students, a juvenile and two non-students from Phagwara, according to police sources.

Has the Reddit user been identified?

Yes. Kapurthala SSP Gaurav Toora said the student has been identified and is being questioned; police are probing her statement and motive.