Temasek Polytechnic said yesterday that it is investigating a scuffle involving three first-year students - including one who was filmed in a tirade in a packed lecture theatre.

Various clips of the incident went viral after they were posted on online discussion forum Reddit and Facebook on Wednesday night.

In an 18-minute video compilation on Reddit, a student dressed in a yellow-and-black striped shirt can be seen shouting aggressively, before he is confronted and briefly put in a chokehold by a student in a black shirt.

As a lecturer tries to stop the scuffle, the student in the yellow-and-black striped shirt continues his tirade, hurling vulgarities and gesturing at several students.

A man in a red polo T-shirt is seen trying to stop him but to no avail.

Later, the student is seen picking a fight with another student wearing a red singlet. According to a Reddit user, the course manager and a security officer were eventually called into the lecture theatre.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, a Temasek Poly spokesman yesterday said the scuffle broke out after one of the students created a disturbance during a lecture on Wednesday morning.

The spokesman said the students eventually calmed down after staff who were present intervened. No one was injured.

"Temasek Polytechnic (TP) views this matter seriously and is investigating the incident. All three students have been instructed to make themselves available to assist with the investigation," the spokesman added.

The polytechnic said it would also take appropriate disciplinary action against the students, where necessary, in addition to counselling them. "TP does not condone such behaviour of our students and will be speaking to all who were present in the lecture theatre," the spokesman said.