Owaisi blames Haryana Govt for Kashmiri students' assault

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday condemned the alleged assault on two Kashmiri students in Haryana and accused the state government of failing to live up to its constitutional responsibility.

Talking to ANI, Owaisi said that the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar-led government has miserably failed to provide protection to the "life and limb of the state's people".

"The incident clearly shows that the government has failed in living up to its constitutional responsibility and I strongly condemn the beating of the Kashmiri students," Owaisi said.

"Kashmir is an integral part of India and it will always be. What message are we sending? What crime have they done? Who are the vigilantes to target them? The government is following its ideology instead of providing security to people," he added.

Earlier in the day, the Haryana Police lodged an FIR in connection with the incident at the Central University of Haryana, in Mahendergarh.

The FIR was registered at the Mahendergarh Police Station, under sections 148 (Rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly guilty of offence towards the common object), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti called for the Haryana authorities to investigate the incident and take strict action after reports of the assault emerged on Friday.

The two students, Aaftab Ahmed and Amzad Ali, narrated the incident to ANI.

"Yesterday, my friend and I had gone to Mahendergarh to buy some things and before leaving for the university, we also visited the mosque to offer Namaz. When we came out, we noticed some people following us, but we didn't pay much heed," Aaftab Ahmed said.

"Next, we went to a tailor's shop for my work, and as soon as I sat on the bike, a group of 15 to 20 people came and started beating us," the other student Amzad Ali said.

The perpetrator did not offer any reason for their action, despite the students repeatedly asking what their fault was. Their call for help also went unheard by the passersby.

"Soon after, police arrived at the spot and asked us to go to the hospital. We went for a checkup and returned to our university campus. We told faculty about the incident and lodged a complaint with the university," Ahmed said.

--ANI