A horrific case reported in the Banda district of Uttar Pradesh has led to a furore after a student was violently beaten up in one of the libraries when he requested two men to stop disturbing him as he was studying.
The incident, which was filmed by CCTV, has put into serious doubt the issue of law and order and security of students in open study areas.
Banda Student Assaulted in Library Over Noise Complaint
In one of the reports by Aaj Tak, the victim whose name goes by Shatrughan, a local area resident who resides next to the city headquarters to study, was preparing to do competitive exams in a local library on November 6. Two men who were sitting behind him apparently started talking in high tones, and the student requested them to stop talking.
Outraged by the comment, they invited a flock of local thugs who were the ones to enter the library and beat up the student to death.
The report indicates that the attackers punched and hit the student severally even breaking his spectacles. In the video of the attack, some of the men are hurling insults on the victim and beating him physically in the presence of other students who were stunned.
Banda Student Attack Sparks Outrage
The victim also claimed that the attackers threatened to kill him in case he went to the police. He filed a complaint against the Aliganj police outpost despite the intimidation. The student has however alleged that the local police officer had coerced him to give in and has threatened him that his career would be destroyed should he not accede to the alleged, according to the Aaj Tak report.
The student was fed up with the said inaction and took the case to Superintendent of Police (SP) Palash Bansal and insisted that strict measures should be taken against the assaulters.
The media cell of the SP acknowledged that there was a minor case of disagreement between students and both of them had presented written compromise. The SP has instructed the Nagar police inspector at Kotwali now to look into the new complaint and initiate necessary legal proceedings.
The event has highlighted increased concerns on student safety in libraries and other public study areas in small towns in Uttar Pradesh. Most candidates take advantage of these facilities to study competitive exams, and most of them do this late at night, which increases the need to have an enhanced surveillance and a tight monitoring.
