KOLKATA: Students of a boys’ school and a girls’ school clashed in Baguiati on Thursday morning over a long-standing property dispute between the two institutions . Their teachers, far from preventing the violence , egged on the warring students and also threw punches at each other , say police.

The girls took the brunt of the fistfight. At least seven of them were injured, along with three boys. Some of them fractured their hands and others suffered cuts. In a city that is no stranger to violence, this marks a new low.

Students of the girls’ school blocked VIP Road at Kestopur for over half an hour protesting against the ‘attack’ by teachers and students of the boy’s school. Both schools have lodged complaints against each other but no one has been detained yet.

Deshapriya Balika Vidyalaya and Prafulla Kanan Deshapriya Vidyapith share a common football ground, common passage and lawn. According to sources, the two institutions have a bitter feud over the common property, especially a vacant plot between the buildings.

Bamboo fence of boys’ school triggered fight

“Both schools tried to take possession of the vacant land. This caused several incidents in which local party leaders also got involved. The administration intervened each time but couldn’t end the dispute,” a local resident said. Recently, the boys’ school started erecting a bamboo fence to mark their boundary. This was the trigger for Thursday’s violence. When work on the fence was on, students and teachers of the girls’ school swarmed the area and tried to prevent the workers. Students and teachers of the boys’ school came out and a heated argument ensued around 12.30pm. Within seconds, a free-for-all erupted. The fight continued for 20 minutes in one of the busiest parts of Kolkata before a strong police force broke it up.

Mousumi Mondal, teacher in-charge of the girls’ school, accused the boys’ school of attacking them during a “peaceful protest” . “Our students only protested against the illegal construction , but the teachers and students of that school beat up our girls. Several of them are injured ,” said Mousumi.

Principal of boy’s school, Prankrishna Banerjee, said they were building the wall on their campus legally. “Students and teachers of the girl’s school intentionally obstructed our development work repeatedly,” he said. The Bidhannagar police commissionerate is investigating the complaints.