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At the least 4 international college students have been injured after a gaggle of scholars allegedly stormed a college hostel in India's western Gujarat state and attacked a gaggle of scholars attending prayers in the course of the holy month of Ramadan, native media reviews. Have turn into. Native media has reported.
India's Exterior Affairs Ministry on Sunday… Mortgage Native police in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's dwelling state mentioned an investigation was underway in reference to the assault at Gujarat College to take “strict motion in opposition to the culprits”.
College students informed native media {that a} small group had gathered for Ramadan Taraweeh prayers within the boys' hostel advanced on Saturday evening as there isn’t any mosque on the Ahmedabad-based college campus. Quickly after, a mob armed with sticks and knives stormed the hostel, attacked them and vandalized their rooms, he mentioned.
“A gaggle of 15 college students had been praying when three individuals got here and began elevating slogans of 'Jai Shri Ram' (Victory to Lord Ram). They objected to our praying there,” native media quoted A scholar is saying this.
“After a while, round 250 individuals got here and raised slogans of 'Jai Shri Ram'. They pelted stones and vandalized hostel properties.”
An Afghan scholar informed the native NDTV community: “They attacked us even contained in the rooms. They broke laptops, telephones and broken the bike,” he mentioned, including that the AC and sound system had been additionally destroyed.
Movies posted on Twitter confirmed vandalism in scholar dormitories and a mob destroying college students' bikes with lengthy instruments.
“We are able to't survive like this,” one African scholar mentioned in his video filmed from a dormitory. Within the background, sounds of loud shouting and the group dropping, breaking and breaking objects may be heard.
“We got here to India to review and now we’re being attacked simply because it’s Ramzan time and Muslims had been praying. Now they’re breaking bikes, every thing under the steps is being damaged,” he mentioned.
Worldwide college students (Africa, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and many others.) learning in Gujarat College. @gujuni1949 The declare is that they had been overwhelmed, stones had been thrown at them and their hostel (A-Block), autos had been destroyed after they had been providing Ramzan Taraweeh at a spot contained in the hostel A-Block… pic.twitter.com/ogJ3h7FUin
– Mohammad Zubair (@zoo_bear) 16 March 2024
Two college students had been critically injured and are present process therapy in hospital after the assault on college students from Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and several other African international locations, the Indian Specific information web site reported.
'Strict motion in opposition to criminals'
“Yesterday, round 10:30 pm, a gaggle of scholars had been praying. Round 20-25 individuals got here and requested them why they had been praying right here and that they need to go to the mosque, Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik informed reporters at a briefing on Sunday.
“An argument broke out between them, stones had been pelted and other people from exterior vandalized their rooms.”
He mentioned {that a} criticism has been acquired in opposition to 20-25 individuals and one accused has been recognized. He mentioned that 9 groups have been shaped to analyze the incident.
India's Ministry of Exterior Affairs mentioned on Twitter that the state authorities was “taking strict motion in opposition to the culprits”.
“Two international college students had been injured within the conflict. One in every of them has been discharged from the hospital after medical care,” mentioned spokesperson Randhit Jaiswal.
Asaduddin Owaisi, a member of parliament from the southern metropolis of Hyderabad, referred to as on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and House Minister Amit Shah to “intervene to ship a powerful message”.
“What a disgrace. Your devotion and spiritual slogans come to the fore solely when Muslims follow their faith peacefully,” he posted on X.
“Homegrown anti-Muslim hatred is destroying India's goodwill,” he wrote, tagging India's Exterior Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
Gujarat College Vice-Chancellor Dr Neerja A Gupta informed native media that worldwide college students wanted to be skilled in “cultural sensitivity”.
“These are international college students and once you go overseas, you have to be taught cultural sensitivity. These college students want an orientation. We’ll sit with them, present cultural orientation and focus on the best way to strengthen their safety,” NDTV quoted Gupta as saying.