Students clash over football match at GD Goenka University in Sohna
Among those injured, two Nigerian students are presently undergoing treatment at a hospital while five others were discharged after being administered first aid. The foreign students are reportedly stable, police said
Two hostel teams of the GD Goenka University in Sohna clashed over a football match on Friday, police said. Cross FIRs have been registered against each group of students for allegedly thrashing each other and creating a ruckus on the football ground. According to university officials, football matches have been taking place at the university for the last 16 days.
Among those injured, two Nigerian students are presently undergoing treatment at a hospital while five others were discharged after being administered first aid. The foreign students are reportedly stable, police said. Dr Dhirendra Singh Parihar, registrar, GD Goenka University, said, “After 60 minutes of the match, one team was in the lead. They planned to give chance to substitute players on the bench which led to a tiff between the players. Both teams started taunting each other during the last 18 minutes of the match and the situation soon escalated into a tussle,” he said.
After the match was over, some local students allegedly entered the rooms of Nigerian students and thrashed them. On the other hand, the Nigerian students also allegedly hit local students, police said. One of the FIRs was registered based on the complaint of a fourth-year pharmacy student Sultan Khan. “I was roaming around the campus around 5.40 pm when 4-5 Nigerian students came and started abusing and assaulting me. I raised an alarm following which my friends came to my rescue. The Nigerian students also assaulted them with rods and sticks,” he alleged.
The second FIR was lodged based on the complaint of a foreign student named Rabiu M Abdul, who alleged that the Indian students attacked him and other foreign students inside the hostel and on the football field. Police said cases have been registered under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) involving causing hurt and criminal intimidation. Upasna Singh, deputy commissioner of police, said, “We have received complaints from students and the administration is working to resolve the issue.”
Parihar said that university officials have scanned CCTV footage and identified at least 12 students involved in the brawl. “We have asked them to go on leave till an enquiry by the university proctorial board is completed,” he said. He added that the university has informed the Nigerian embassy as the brawl involved foreign students.
