Several Visva Bharati students injured in campus attack

Kolkata: Armed with rods and sticks, a group of men allegedly affiliated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) attacked students of a boys' hostel inside the Visva Bharati university campus, Shantiniketan,

on Wednesday night, for participating in an anti-CAA protest, leaving several of them injured.

A student who was beaten up alleged that the incident was a fallout of the anti-CAA demonstration held by students during BJP Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta's visit to the campus on January 8.

"I was returning home from the university when they beat us up with sticks. They were Achintya Bagdi and Sabbir Ali. This was done as we had staged a protest against BJP MP Swapan Dasgupta on January 8," one of the injured told reporters from the hospital bed.

State Education minister Partha Chatterjee said ABVP has been indulging in such incidents at educational institutes in the country to suppress democratic protests by students. "What happened at Visva Bharati is the latest instance," he added.

Two persons identified as Achintya Bagdi and Saber Ali has been arrested on Thursday for their alleged involvement in the attack and were sent to nine days police custody after being produced at Bolpur court.

"On behalf of all peace-loving citizens, especially students, we strongly condemn the violent acts of students affiliated to BJP on hallowed portals of Visva Bharati, a central Univ campus. We welcome swift action taken by police and appeal to the administration take action and book the culprits," read a statement issued by Trinamool Congress.

Students' Federation of India (SFI) Visva Bharati unit leader Somnath Sau also alleged that a group of outsiders beat up Swapnanil Mukhopadhyay and several other members of their student wing with rods and sticks at around 11:30 pm on Wednesday. Mukhopadhyay was hospitalised and some others who suffered minor injuries were released after first aid.

Students on January 8 had confined BJP MP Dasgupta, Visva Bharati Vice-Chancellor Bidyut Chakraborty and several others to a room for over seven hours to protest against the university's decision to invite Dasgupta to deliver a lecture on the draconian citizenship law.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson of the central university said: "Two groups of students clashed inside the campus. It was not linked to politics. The security officer and others went there to sort out the matter."

ABVP Birbhum district coordinator Ramesh Paramanik, however, denied Achintya Bagdi and Saber Ali's association with them.