Patna, March 15 (IANS) Over a month after violent protests in the Bihar capital against fleecing by private coaching institutes, in which two students were killed, the state government Monday gave a clean chit to these institutes, drawing protests from the opposition.

In its reply in the state assembly, the government termed the killing of two students during the violent protests as 'merely an accident'. It also said the coaching institutes hardly used force or fire-arms against protesting students Feb 9.

Angry over the government's clean chit, the opposition members - particularly the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Lok Janshakti Party legislators - criticised the government.

However, in view of the violent protests, the state government said it has decided to bring in a new law to monitor and regulate the functioning of private coaching institutes. The bill, possibly the first of its kind in the country, will help to prevent innocent students from falling prey to false promises made by coaching institutes.

There are over 5,000 private coaching institutes in Patna, operating without any surveillance or legal sanction.