Aligarh (UP): Three youths sustained bullet injuries in a fight between two rival groups allegedly belonging to two hostels of the Aligarh Muslim University, officials said on Tuesday. The incident took place Monday night and the injured, Sadiq, Firoz Alam, and Abdullah, are undergoing treatment at the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, they said.
Police claimed the three injured were AMU students. However, varsity publicity in-charge Prof Asim Siddiqui said they were outsiders. Siddiqui said a clash had taken place Monday night between two student groups at V M Hall. A short while later, a group of armed youths barged into Sir Syed Hall (North) where they fired at another group in which three youths were wounded, the officials said.
The university has not issued any explanation yet on how these "outsiders" entered the hostels so late at night. Meanwhile, 15 people have been named in an FIR in connection with the firing incident. According to Civil Lines Acting Circle Officer Sanjay Jaiswal, all 15 people have been charged under various sections of IPC including 307 (attempt to murder), 147 (rioting), and 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon).
Among those named in the FIR are Amaan Chaudhary, Akram Tippa, Kashif Haji, Mayank Thakur and Salman Kakrala. The firing incident seems to be a fallout of an old rivalry between two student groups, police said. An uneasy calm prevailed on the AMU campus on Tuesday morning. Student protesters blocked the campus' two main entries, Baab-e-Syed and Centenary Gate, forcing the varsity authorities to divert traffic to Faiz Gate and Sir Syed House Gate, which normally remain closed.
AMU Proctor Mohamad Waseem told PTI that barring Amaan Chaudhary, all the remaining 14 people named in the FIR are "not students of AMU". When asked as to how so many outsiders were present inside a university hostel late in the night, he said that this matter is being probed.
