Beefed-up security spoils beef and pork festival at Osmania University in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: It was a tense day in and around the historic Osmania University campus in the city of Nizams. Protests erupted, but the police managed to stop beef and pork festivals in the campus after a complete clampdown.

Due to police restrictions, the organizers confined the program to their hostel rooms. As a symbolic celebration students shared pictures and videos of eating beef inside hostel rooms.

However, it was curfew like situation in Osmania University. Police stopped outsiders from entering the campus and barricaded all entrances to the campus after students decided to go ahead with their planned beef and pork festival. Security was also beefed up and extra forces were deployed in the campus. Multiple checkpoints were created and movement of students was restricted to hostels.

High tension prevailed outside university campus as many protesters gathered and raised slogans against the planned beef festival. Police detained over 150 people. Incidents of violence were also reported in the city. Stones were pelted on RTC buses causing damage to public property.

As a precautionary measure 10 key student leaders of various unions were taken into preventive custody. Also BJP MLA Raja Singh who had threatened to stop beef festival by all means was arrested to prevent any untoward incident.

C Laxminarayana, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Osmania University earlier told reporters that the police would be detaining all protesters after Hyderabad High Court instructions to ensure that the festivals are not held. The city civil court had passed status quo order on all non-academic festivals in campus after which police beefed up the security.