Two injured in mob attack on family, AMU students protest

At least two members of a family were injured in an alleged mob attack at a railway station here, triggering protests by Aligarh Muslim University students who said it was an attempt to lynch them.

The attack took place following an altercation Sunday as the family of Afsana Begum was getting off a train while some other passengers were trying to get into the same compartment, according to a complaint lodged with the railway police.

A little later, about 30 people reached there and attacked Afsana Begum's family members, their complaint said.

Police said two family members, Shafiq and Fahim, were admitted at AMU's Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College. Afsana Begum told reporters that four others suffered minor injuries.

Before the complaint could be lodged with the railway police, the assailants had fled. AMU students said they were outsiders.

As the news spread, several Aligarh Muslim University students gathered at the station, demanding the arrest of the unidentified assailants.

Afsana Begum's family had come from Kannauj for the medical treatment of her son Shafiq.

The situation was defused after GRP inspector Yashpal Singh assured them that the culprits would be booked.

On Monday, former AMU student union president Salman Imtiaz led a protest march.

In a memorandum handed over to the district authorities, the students demanded the arrest of those involved in the attack within 48 hours.

They warned they would intensify their stir if the attackers are not nabbed by then.

The memorandum called the incident a "failed attempt at mob lynching" and "a deliberate attempt to foment communal violence. It also demanded a judicial inquiry.

It alleged that last week some right-wing groups had tried to trigger communal tension by calling for a ban on burqas at a local college.

The AMU Teachers Association general secretary Najmul Islam also demanded a probe into the railway station attack.