Patna: Hundreds of students from Bihar studying in Tamil Nadu have returned home fearing violence in the wake of Sri Lanka's military offensive against the Tamil Tigers.

Many of the students, looking frightened, reached Patna by train early on Thursday. More are expected on Friday.

"We were stunned when the authorities told us to vacate the hostels by Monday night. We were told that they wouldn't be responsible for any untoward incident if we did not vacate the premises," Anil Kumar Singh, a student of SRM University in Kancheepuram said.

The Tamil Nadu government announced the closure of all colleges in the state and ordered all students to vacate the hostels to prevent the spread of student protests against the the Sri Lankan war.

Another student, Sunil Prasad, said that there was a rumour that Tamil Tiger guerrillas fleeing the violence in Sri Lanka might target non-Tamils in educational institutions in protest New Delhi's refusal to bail out the rebels.

Thousands of students from Bihar study in Tamil Nadu. IANS