Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Madhya Pradesh. Photo credit: IGNTU Facebook
Five students of the Indira Gandhi National Tribal University (IGNTU) in Anuppur, Madhya Pradesh, have been booked for allegedly assaulting an Assamese student on campus, police said on Friday (Jan 16, 2026). The five students were also expelled from Central University.
Hirosh Jyoti Das, 22, a master’s student in economics, was allegedly brutally attacked in a hostel at around 4 am on January 13 by five students who arrived at his room drunk. Mr. Das, who hails from Assam’s Sonitpur district, has a broken nose and sustained injuries near his eyes and other parts of his body.
The FIR was registered on January 14 against Anurag Pandey, Jatin Singh, Rajnish Tripathi, Vishal Yadav and Utkarsh Singh, all undergraduates from different courses, based on a complaint by Mr. Das. The accused have been booked under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Sections 296, 115(2), 351(3) and 3(5), according to Anuppur Superintendent of Police Moti Ur Rahman.
“No complaints about racism”
However, Mr Rahman denied that the accused had committed any racial slurs.
“The victim also did not mention anything like that in her complaint. There are about 25 students in IGNTU from northeastern states and no complaint of racism has ever been received,” he told The Hindu.
“On that day, the accused boys barged into the victim’s room as some of them used to stay in that room in the past. The accused were drunk and there was an argument between them after which they assaulted Mr. Das,” the SP said, adding that the matter is under investigation.
‘I’m scared’
Meanwhile, the IGNTU administration on January 14 expelled the five accused students on the recommendation of a nine-member internal inquiry committee that was set up after the incident. The accused students were given 15 days to file their responses.
Mr. Das also released a video statement expressing fear for his life and relating the incident to the brutal killing of Anjela Chakma, a 24-year-old MBA student from Tripura, in a racial attack in Uttarakhand last month.
“I am scared. Who will protect me if those people attack me again at night? I don’t want to die here like the Tripura boy was murdered in Dehradun. I am the only son of my family. I want to achieve something in life and not get into such fights,” said Mr. Das, urging the authorities to ensure his safety.
Published – 16 Jan 2026 20:47 IST
