Madarsa student thrashed in train

After a madarsa (Islamic Seminary) teacher was pushed from a running train in West Bengal, a Muslim teen was allegedly thrashed in a train in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district, about 400 kilometre from here.

Seventeen-year-old Hafeez Mohammed Farman Niyazi, a student of an Islamic seminary in UP's Bareilly town, was allegedly "abused, assaulted and stripped" inside a passenger train near Babrala in Sambhal district by some youths.

"The youths used objectionable words against my religion... They tore my kurta, broke my eye glasses and threw away my skull cap... They also thrashed me," Niyazi, who lodged a police complaint, said.

He said that no one in the compartment came to his rescue while he was being beaten up by the youths, who also chanted religious slogans.

Niyazi, who claimed that he lost consciousness after being assaulted, found himself near a forested area in Babrala the next morning.

Police sources said that although the incident occurred around ten days ago, it came to light on Thursday when Niyazi approached the police.

Niyazi also claimed that the Railway police did not register his complaint when he approached them a few days after the alleged incident.

"A case has been registered against unidentified youths... We are investigating the matter," said a senior police official in Aligarh, the home town of the victim.

There have been a spate of incidents of thrashing of members of the minority community in different parts of the country in the past few days.

Barely four days ago, a madrasa teacher was allegedly forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram' and later pushed out of a running train near a railway station in West Bengal.

Earlier, a Muslim youth was also forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram' and allegedly lynched to death by a mob in Jharkhand.