An expelled student of Aligarh Muslim University was killed and another injured in a gun battle between rival groups on the campus, prompting authorities to deploy Rapid Action Force and order a "major clean-up" operation in AMU hostels.
Violence erupted on the campus around last midnight following a clash between two student groups leading to the death of Mahtab, DIG (Aligarh Range) Govind Agarwal, who led the police operation, told PTI today.
Agarwal said trouble started when a resident of Mumtaz hostel was assaulted and his room set afire. The victim rushed to the Proctor's office to file a complaint.
As soon as news of the incident spread, students belonging to two rival factions gathered and a clash broke out.
Police said Mahtab was shot dead late last night near the Proctor's office, where the warring groups exchanged fire.
The rampaging students set ablaze a jeep and over half-a- dozen bikes. The mob also indulged in arson and torched the Proctor's office building.
The violence was so widespread that it took police two hours to disperse trouble makers from different spots on the campus.
An AMU official said tension between the rival groups, belonging to Azamgarh and Sambhal regions of Uttar Pradesh, has been simmering for quite some time now.
Police said an FIR has been registered against eight persons including Mohsin Iqbal, a student of MA (Political Science) and seven others, most of whom are outsiders and former students, in connection with the killing of Mahtab.
The condition of Mohd Waqif, the youth who was injured in the firing, is stated to be "critical" and he has been rushed to Delhi for emergency treatment.
According to AMU officials, Waqif is not a student but was seeking admission to the University and staying near the campus for preparing for the engineering entrance test.
Rapid Action Force (RAF) was deployed at all sensitive
spots, especially in view of the entrance test for the engineering college scheduled for today with over 13,000 candidates appearing from AMU campus centre alone.
The entrance test, however, passed off peacefully amid strong security measures though an uneasy calm prevailed on the campus.
Vice Chancellor Lt Gen (Retd) Zameer Uddin Shah attributed the violence to faction-fight between rival groups of students in which most of those involved were former students including some expelled ones.
Shah said preliminary reports indicated that all those involved in the violence were "occupying hostel rooms illegally".
The VC said that in the next two weeks, "a major clean-up" operation would be conducted in different hostels with the help of RAF and local police. The drive would take place without closing the University sine die, he said.
Shah said that after June 6, when the University closes for the summer vacations, all hostel rooms would be vacated and students would be allowed re-entry only after fresh allotments.
