Sooraj

Student Human Rights Defender

Tamil Nadu

HRDA has issued an urgent appeal to the National Human Rights Commission of India on 14 June regarding the brutal assault on student human rights defenders who were observing a peaceful protest in Chennai. They were protesting against the Central Government’s order regulating cattle sale for slaughter. The students are from the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle (APSC), an independent student body recognised by IIT, Madras. Mr. Sooraj is one of the core members of the APSC who was peacefully involved in the protest to provide moral support and solidarity.

A notification was issued on May 23, 2017 by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change on the ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017’, banning cattle slaughter and introducing severe restrictions on the sale of cattle to prevent their killing. On May 28, 2017, a group of students initiated the idea of holding a discussion on the issue. They later shared the invite of the festival in their Facebook page and also mentioned that beef will be served after the discussion.

At around 7.30 PM on May 28, 2017, students had gathered at the Himalaya Lawns inside the campus. It is learnt that a group of students associated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidya Parishad (ABVP), BJP’s students’ wing, were watching them from a distance, and were trying to identify those who were present. Mr. Arjun and Mr. Nishant were threatened by Mr. Manish, a student associated with the RSS. They registered a complaint with the IIT Dean, via email, but the Dean took no action.

On May 30, 2017, Mr. R Sooraj, who is associated with APSC, was having lunch. Mr. Manish, along with Mr. Akhil Pratap Kumar, came and sat near him and asked if he had eaten beef the other day. Immediately thereafter, Mr. Manish and Mr. Akhil shouted at Mr. Sooraj saying, “How dare you come to a Jain mess after eating beef.”. They attacked him. Mr. Manish and Mr. Akhil, along with the other five unidentified persons associated with Right-wing organizations, brutally attacked Mr. Sooraj. It is learnt that Mr. Sooraj might need to undergo a surgery since the injury in the eye seemed serious and he was taken to the Sankara Nethralaya Hospital in Nungambakkam.

Mr. Sooraj states that he has filed a complaint with the police and no proper action has been initiated. He further states that it was alarming to know that Mr. Manish has a history of being violent with other students and has been threatening others. Mr. Sooraj lives in the same campus and he fears for his life and seeks police protection.