Both the principal and the professor received injuries on their head and have been admitted in the hospital, said a senior official of the government college. The principal later submitted his resignation.

The incident is believed to be a fallout of a clash on Wednesday between two groups of the students belonging to the Congress and the Trinamool.

According to police, a group of the students backed by Trinamool forced their way into the chamber of officiating principal Dilip De Sarkar. Not finding him in the office, they found him taking a class on the second floor of the college.”

The students dragged out of the principal and started beating him with cricket stumps and iron rods. When Professor Subrata Saha tried to save the principal, he was also beaten up.

Gautam Deb, state minister for North Bengal Development, said, “This is a very unfortunate incident. But we have come to know that miscreants did not belong to the TMC and they are backed by another political party. We have directed the police to investigate into the matter and arrest the guilty.”

Meanwhile, Sarkar and Saha have lodged a complaint against the TMC leaders with the Raiganj police station. The college authorities have postponed the election and declared the college to remain closed for indefinite period. Protesting against the incident, the employees of the college took out a silent rally in the town.