Chennai: A Ph.D Scholar at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Madras) was on Tuesday attacked allegedly by some students owing allegiance to right wing groups.

R. Sooraj, PhD Scholar and a member of the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle, was attacked for eating beef as part of a protest against restrictions on cattle trade which was brought by Union Government. The beef-eating protest was held by a group of students on Sunday night.

He sustained serious injuries to his eye in the attack. He has been taken to Sankara Nethralaya, Nungambakkam, for treatment. He is now in the emergency care of the hospital. The administration of the institute has not yet commented on the incident.

The incident happened at around 2.15 pm in the vegetarian mess where Sooraj was having lunch with a friend. Manish, a masters student, reportedly approached him and began asking questions. “He then asked if Sooraj had beef at the festival and suddenly 7-8 students surrounded him. Before his friend could react, Manish beat Sooraj on the back of his head,” a student who is at present with Sooraj in the hospital said.

His friend was then able to extricate Sooraj from the group but by then, he had been seriously injured. We took him to the institute dispensary, the student said. At the IIT-M clinic, Manish returned to threaten Sooraj’s friends and is alleged to have warned the eyewitness of dire consequences if the matter was taken to police.

 Sooraj, a native of Mallapuram district in Kerala, would undergo surgery to fix the lacerations suffered as a result of the blows, though it is feared among his friends that his vision may be affected due to the severity of the blows. He will be assessed by an ENT specialist on Wednesday at the private hospital in Nungambakkam.

 

source: The Hindu