International students offering namaz assaulted by mob in Gujarat University hostel; hospitalised

Several videos of the incident have surfaced, showing a group of people, many of them wearing saffron scarves, pelting stones, sloganeering in the hostel and vandalizing bikes. It is learnt that victim students are from Afghanistan and African nations.

Ahmedabad: At least four international students at the Gujarat University in Ahmedabad sustained injuries after miscreants assaulted them in the campus hostel late Saturday night while they were offering namaz, following which the police swung into action and arrested two perpetrators and are hunting for more.

The arrested, Hitesh Mewada and Bharat Patel, are residents of Ahmedabad and have been booked under several IPC sections.

Two students — one from Sri Lanka and another from Tajikistan — were hospitalised after the incident that took place in the A-block hostel, prompting the external affairs ministry to weigh in and say that it is in “touch” with the Gujarat government. As many as 300 foreign students are studying at the varsity.

State home minister Harsh Sanghavi said strict action would be taken against the miscreants following the violence, which a Congress MLA termed “shameful”.

Several videos of the incident have surfaced online showing a group of people, many of them wearing saffron scarves, pelting stones, sloganeering in the hostel and vandalising bikes. Police said that they were verifying all the videos and nine teams are scouring the city for other perpetrators.

According to the police, the incident happened after “a group of outsiders went to the hostel and asked the foreign students why they were offering namaz in the open area of the hostel instead of a mosque”.

This, Ahmedabad police commissioner G S Malik said, “led to an argument which turned into a scuffle”.

Malik said a group of 20-25 outsiders entered the students’ rooms and vandalised their belongings.

“We have taken the incident seriously and are investigating it irrespective of whether they were from any organisation or not. We have registered an FIR against 20 to 25 persons based on a complaint filed by the local security official,” the police commissioner said.

In one of the videos, a student is heard screaming, “They (assailants) are running away after they broke everything. Police are not arresting them, they are running away. This a democratic country...this is a secular country.”

Following the attack, Randhir Jaisawal, spokesperson from the Ministry of External Affairs, said, “An incident of violence took place at Gujarat University in Ahmedabad yesterday. State government is taking strict action against the perpetrators. Two foreign students were injured in the clash. One of them has been discharged from hospital after receiving medical attention. MEA is in touch with the Gujarat government.”

Congress MLA Imran Khedawala was among the first to reach the hospital to meet the students.

“I received a call at around 10.30/10.45 PM that a mob of about 150 to 200 people entered the hostel and attacked the students who were offering namaz. I called up the local police inspector and the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) and inquired about it. Later, I rushed to the hospital,” Khedawala told DH.

“This is such a shameful incident for Gujarat and the country,” he added.