Assam Student Assaulted at IGNTU; Five Expelled, FIR Registered

Five students have been expelled and booked for allegedly assaulting a 22-year-old postgraduate student from Assam at a hostel in Indira Gandhi National Tribal University (IGNTU), Anuppur district police said on January 16.

The incident occurred on January 13, around 4 pm, when the victim, Hirok Jyoti Das, an economics postgraduate at IGNTU, was returning to his hostel room from the washroom. According to the complaint, the accused students, Anurag Pande, Jatin Singh, Rajnish Tripathi, Vishal Yadav, and Utkarsh Singh, reportedly questioned him about his background and then physically assaulted him. Das sustained injuries to his eyes, lips, nose, and temples, reportedly after being hit with a bracelet.

The police registered an FIR shortly before midnight on January 15 under sections related to voluntarily causing hurt, criminal intimidation, obscene acts, and common intention of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Authorities are investigating whether racial slurs were used during the attack. Das’s medico-legal certificate report is still awaited.

The IGNTU disciplinary committee had already expelled the five accused students a day before the FIR was filed.

The incident comes shortly after the death of Anjel Chakma, a student from Tripura who was attacked at a private university in Dehradun last month, sparking nationwide outrage over hate crimes targeting students from the Northeast.

Political reactions have been swift. The Madhya Pradesh Congress criticised the ruling BJP, alleging that students linked to the party made racist remarks against Das and assaulted him while the university administration only took token disciplinary measures. Congress leader Umang Singhar further claimed that IGNTU had become a hub for party affiliates and accused the campus of frequent incidents involving drugs and unruly behaviour.

The ABVP, a student body affiliated with the RSS, also raised concerns, submitting a memorandum to the Anuppur Superintendent of Police about the presence of anti-social elements, drunkards, and drug users on the campus. ABVP district secretary Shivendra Chaturvedi warned that the student body may launch an agitation if the situation does not improve within two weeks.

Also Read: Interim Committee Formed by 17 Student Bodies to Pursue Justice for Anjel Chakma