A dispute between inmates of a hostel in Ravanehshaw University and a deputy warden escalated into a political row with teachers and local Kataka Sadar MLA Prakash Sethi trading misconduct charges against each other. The students protested after they found that two hostel rooms were locked after returning from Friendship Day celebrations on the night of August 1. BJP’s Kataka Sadar MLA Prakash Sethi attended a meeting chaired by the Vice-Chancellor to resolve the students’ issue. The Ravenshaw University Teachers Association (RUTA) rejected the MLA’s allegations and instead accused the legislator of inappropriate behaviour during the meeting. The Vice-Chancellor appealed to both the teachers and the MLA to resolve the issue as it is linked with the reputation of the century-old institution.