150 students arrested following 'dharna' in Puducherry

About 150 students have been arrested when they resorted to a dharna at the AFT grounds here without police permission.

The students were agitating seeking justice for the death of  Ariyalur girl Anitha  and abolition of  the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET) late last night.

According to police, the students gathered at the AFT grounds and sat in a dharna to press their demands without police permission.

The AFT ground belongs to the education department and on instructions from the department to evict the students, Superintendents of Police Vengadasamy, Arumugham and Thazildar Dayalan held talks with them around midnight.

The students sought permission to conduct a demonstration near the Swadeshi Cotton mills here today and police refused to give permission, following which the students continued their dharna.

Police then arrested them and took then to the D Nagar  community centre.

However, another group of students waylaid the police vehicle carrying the students at the Indira Gandhi square.

The students snatched away  the key of the police vehicle and ran from the spot.

Police, however, chased the students and  got back the key to take the students to the community hall.