At least fifteen students from Pakistan’s minority Hindu community were injured when they were attacked by members of a radical Islamic student organisation Islami Jamiat Tulba (IJT). The said incident occurred when the Hindu students were celebrating Holi at the University of Karachi. It is being alleged that this was the second such incident in two days. A number of videos have surfaced on the social networking platform showing the IJT attacking Hindu communities even after the students obtained permission from the administration to celebrate Holi.
The police had received an application to open a case against the attacker. According to Siasat, other videos show security guards wielding batons and beating students as they flee the scene.
Following the incident, a University of Karachi official confirmed that there was a mishap in the Sindhi department where Hindus and other students were celebrating Holi and throwing colored powder at each other, when some students attacked and injured them. The official went on to say that they are investigating the incident because it is completely against their policies.
An unnamed Hindu girl student, dressed in a mask with other students, later posted a video on Twitter detailing the entire incident. As per Siasat, she stated that IJT activists attacked students celebrating Holi in the hall and beat some of them. She further provided that the attackers also harassed female students, forcing them to leave the place. She said that the Hindu students had assembled to celebrate the Holi festival, and she wants the government and varsity to take action against those responsible.
According to Telangana Today, the Sindh Council General Secretary Kashif Brohi stated in response to the incident that members of the Hindu community and the council had organised a Holi celebration after obtaining permission from the university administration. He claimed that IJT activists began hurling threats after students posted Holi invitations on their Facebook page. He claimed that on Monday morning, members of the Sindh Council and the Hindu community were celebrating Holi outside PU Law College when IJT activists wielding guns and batons attacked them.
Brohi went on to say that the students later gathered outside the vice chancellor’s office to protest when security guards arrived with batons and began beating them. According to Telangana Today, he also claimed that security guards bundled four to five students into their vans, preventing them from recording their peaceful protest.
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