Balasore: Tension ran high at Fakir Mohan University in Odisha's Baleshwar late on Thursday night after students of a private nursing college staged a protest over the alleged delay in conducting their examinations. The agitating students also alleged that they were assaulted by the university students.

According to the protesting students, they have been waiting for the seventh and eighth semester examinations despite six years having passed since they enrolled in a four-year nursing course. They alleged that the university has failed to conduct the pending examinations, leaving their academic future uncertain.

The students began their sit-in protest at around 9 am and continued until midnight, demanding immediate action from the university authorities. The situation became tense when Vice-Chancellor Professor Santosh Kumar Tripathy arrived to hold discussions with the protesters.

During the unrest, the Vice-Chancellor's health deteriorated. He was later taken to the university hospital for medical attention.

The protesting nursing students also alleged that students of Fakir Mohan University physically assaulted them during the agitation. They further accused the Vice-Chancellor of misbehaving with their parents a day earlier.