Kerala students said they were attacked in Delhi on suspicion of stealing after being punished for not knowing Hindi

In a letter to Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golchha on Friday, CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas asked for a high-level, unbiased Investigation into the September 24 alleged assault and humiliation of two Keralan students close to the Red Fort. According to Brittas, two students from the Birbhum district, Aswanth I T and Sudhin K, who were enrolled in Zakir Husain Delhi College, were wrongly accused of stealing, beaten by a mob, and allegedly subjected to police violence while in custody.

Brittas said in his letter that police officers conspired with the mob instead of defending the students after they were harassed. He stated, “They were dragged, beaten with fiber lathis, stomped upon, stripped and humiliated.” He further claimed that one student’s shoes had been taken, their cell phones had been confiscated, and the attack had apparently continued within police facilities with residents allowed to take part.

According to Brittas, the students were also beaten when they attempted to explain themselves in English, forced into making false confessions, and subjected to constant harassment since they couldn’t understand Hindi. He referred to the occurrence as an insult to India‘s cultural and linguistic diversity and labeled it as “a disturbing mix of cultural prejudice and unconstitutional coercion.”

The MP asked the commissioner to make sure that the cops and other accountable parties are found, disciplined, and that the students’ property be retrieved. Additionally, he asked that all Delhi police units be given standing orders to respect constitutional rights and cultural sensitivity.

Requests for comment were not immediately answered by the Delhi Police. As requests for an independent investigation increase, the issue is anticipated to come under more scrutiny.

Brittas wrote on X about the incident: “Two young Keralan students were viciously attacked by a mob and the police in Delhi, beaten on false charges and for not speaking Hindi, and made fun of for their traditional Kerala clothing.” The same individuals who vowed to safeguard them were responsible for this experience. An insult to linguistic variety and our Constitution.

“Two young students from Kerala were brutally assaulted by a mob and the police in Delhi, beaten on false accusations and for not speaking Hindi, tormented for their traditional Kerala attire,” Brittas wrote in a piece about the incident on X. The very persons who vowed to safeguard them were the source of this ordeal. A disrespect to our Constitution and the variety of our languages.