Vijayan described the incident as “deeply saddening” and demanded strict action against the officers if found guilty. He emphasised that students across India pursue higher education in different states, and their language and culture must be respected.
Published Oct 02, 2025 | 5:55 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 02, 2025 | 5:55 PM
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan (Supplied)
Synopsis: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a high-level inquiry into the alleged assault by Delhi police on two Keralite students, IT Ashwant and K Sudhin, on 24 September. The students claimed they were physically attacked, harassed, and forced to speak in Hindi following a confrontation with locals near the Red Fort.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to order a high-level inquiry into the alleged police assault on two Keralite students in New Delhi.
The students—IT Ashwant and K Sudhin, both first-year students at Zakir Husain Delhi College—were reportedly attacked by police officers on 24 September and allegedly forced to speak in Hindi.
In a letter to the Home Minister, Vijayan described the incident as “deeply saddening” and demanded strict action against the officers if found guilty. He emphasised that students across India pursue higher education in different states, and their language and culture must be respected.
“The responsibility of the police is to protect citizens, not to harass them. If such misconduct is tolerated, it will embolden other criminals to target students and migrants,” he wrote, urging an impartial probe into the matter.
Ashwant I T and Sudhin K, according to a complaint submitted to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Delhi, faced severe racism, harassment, physical assault, and custodial torture following a confrontation with locals near the Red Fort on 24 September.
The students said they had gone to a market area near the Red Fort between 6.30 pm and 7 pm, when a man approached them trying to sell an Apple Watch and a phone, which they declined.
“Later, after five minutes, the same guy returned with a gang of 6–7 people and started to harass us, falsely accusing us of stealing a phone from them,” the complaint stated.
Despite seeking help from a police officer present at the scene, identified as Raviranga, the students alleged that the officer “joined the mob who was harassing and assaulted us and even snatched our phone and gave it to the local who was claiming it as theirs.”
The students were eventually released after activists of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) intervened. SFI Delhi State President Sooraj Elamon and other members reportedly approached the police station, leading to the students’ release.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
