HYDERABAD: Students at a govt polytechnic college in Mahabubnagar staged a protest after a mobile phone was discovered in the girls’ washroom, raising privacy concerns. A case has been registered, and the accused has been taken into custody.
District police confirmed that the accused was a student who had come to give his backlog exam. The incident unfolded when a girl student found the phone in the washroom. “The phone’s camera was positioned in a way that could violate our privacy. We immediately informed the college authorities,” one of the students explained.
This incident comes shortly after a similar protest at CMR College in Medchal district. Upon discovering the phone, college staff recovered it and alerted the local police. Student organisations swiftly gathered at the college and staged a protest, demanding action. Police were able to locate the accused by using the phone’s data, catching him as he returned to the washroom looking for it.
According to senior district officials, the men’s and women’s washrooms in the college are located side by side, separated only by a small wall. “The accused placed the phone inside the girls’ washroom, and we are investigating the reasons behind this,” they said.
The investigation is exploring two angles — whether the phone was intended for illegal recording or if it was part of an attempt to cheat in the exam. However, no recordings were found on the phone.
Both male and female students, with support from various student organisations, continued their protest, causing a standoff with police. The accused, who had attended the polytechnic between 2019 and 2022, had not completed his course due to backlogs. “We are investigating if the accused has any previous criminal history,” said a police official.
Police have contacted the accused’s family and they were in the process to gather more information about him.
Local SHE Team was involved in the probe. Police are in the process to send his mobile phone to forensic examination.
