by Ajit ..
Thanks, Emma. That was my guess too. The 'new' status is only for users who have clicked on the assignment link (but not uploaded anything yet). This appears to be a new status and wasn't there in version 2.7
I don't think students are allowed to delete after they have submitted.
BTW - do you know how one can go about contacting the assignment module developers or opening a ticket. I had reported another assignment-related issue (https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=338038) but did not get any replies. Kinda surprised that no one else is affected by it.