Himalaya Harbinger, National Bureau.
A late-night brawl erupted at Gujarat University’s Block A hostel, leaving five foreign national students severely injured. The altercation, reportedly sparked by tensions surrounding the practice of offering namaz on campus, escalated into violence between two groups.
According to Neerajkumar Badgujar, the additional commissioner of police (crime) for Ahmedabad city, “An FIR has been filed, and we assure that the attackers will be arrested soon.” Badgujar also provided an update on the injured students, stating, “One remains hospitalized, while the others have been treated and discharged.”
Eyewitness accounts shed light on the sequence of events. “Last night around 11 pm, 10-15 persons from outside came into our hostel campus. Three of them entered our hostel building while we were offering namaz. They told us we were not allowed to do so here and shouted slogans of Jai Shri Ram. They pushed the security guard out and then attacked the people offering namaz,” recounted a student from Afghanistan who was present during the incident.
The altercation quickly turned violent as other non-Muslim foreign national students came to intervene. “When other non-Muslim foreign national students came to our help, they were also attacked. Their rooms were ransacked, and laptops, mobile phones, and mirrors were damaged,” the Afghan student added.
The police response came after the intruders had fled the scene, as confirmed by the student witness. Videos capturing the attack on the foreign students have circulated widely on social media, highlighting the severity of the incident.
In response to the situation, Gujarat home minister Harsh Sanghavi has called for an urgent meeting with senior officials, including the director general of police (DGP) of Gujarat Police and the joint commissioner of police (JCP) of the crime branch.
Gujarat University vice-chancellor Neerja Gupta’s unavailability for comment on the matter has raised further questions, while Gujarat University police station PI SR Bava stated that the investigation is ongoing and refrained from disclosing additional details at this stage.
The five injured students have been transferred to SVP Hospital for medical treatment.
