By Waquar Hasan
NEW DELHI – Several minor students traveling from Bihar to a madrasa in Dehradun were allegedly intercepted, harassed, and assaulted by a group of men from the Bajrang Dal at a railway station in Uttarakhand.
The Dehradun-based Muslim group Muslim Seva Sangathan raised the issue with local police. Speaking to The Hindustan Gazette, Saddam Qureshi, general secretary of the Sangathan, said around 10-12 children were coming to Dehradun to study at a madrasa when a group of men from Bajrang Dal intercepted and assaulted some of them on April 17.
“The Bajrang Dal men were telling them this and that and how they come from Bihar to here. Is Bihar not part of India? It is not a separate country. Dehradun is an education hub. There are many colleges and universities. Students from different places and areas come here to study. They have this right,” said Qureshi.
The Muslim activist questioned why there is a problem with madrasa students if students of colleges and universities come to study here. It is being claimed that the Madrasa board has been terminated in the state to prevent madrasa students from coming to Uttarakhand. “If the madrasa board has been shut down, it’s up to the madrasa board and the administration what to do. Why are these people engaged in hooliganism?” said Qureshi.
According to Qureshi, they were scheduled to hold a meeting with the SSP and administration to discuss the issue, but it could not be held due to some reason.
A video of the incident has surfaced on social media which shows a group of men interrogating minor boys for coming from Bihar to Uttarakhand.
“Why did you come to drop children here from Bihar? What’s special about the Dehradun madrasa?” asked a man to the madrasa students and their guardians. The men also interrogated a 13-year-old and a 10-year-old child and asked about madrasa education. The madrasa students were explaining what they are taught in the madrasa.
Addressing the media, Akki Qureshi, vice president of Muslim Seva Sangathan, said he spoke to the family members of these madrasa students, and they told him that the students were thrashed after being taken to a secluded place.
This story was originally published in thehindustangazette.com. Read the full story here.