Two social work students from Kerala were set upon in an unprovoked attack by a gang of motorbike riding men in the Jaiaw Pdeng neighbourhood here today.
Rejaz M Sydeek and Sarath S Thambi, master students from the Central University in Kerala who were interning here in Shillong, were assaulted by a group of 30 bikers.
Sydeek and nine others from the university have been interning with various organisations in Shillong and today was their final day. He and Thambi, who were interning with Impulse NGO Network, went to have lunch at a restaurant in Jaiaw on their last day.
After paying the bill, at around 4:30pm, they were preparing to leave and Thambi was set upon by the motorbike gang while Sydeek escaped largely unscathed.
Narrating the incident, Sydeek said that close to 30 youngsters armed with blunt objects and their helmets started to attack them and his friend Sarath was viciously punched in the face.
Sydeek said that it appeared as if the bikers were part of a rally. It seems that there was no reason for the assault except that the victims were non-tribals.
The waiter and receptionist at the restaurant tried their best to save the two and a doctor from a nearby hospital (possibly H Gordon Roberts Hospital) also stepped into the fray and saved Thambi from the attackers.
“We were shocked because it was our first experience (of such a thing) in Shillong,” Sydeek told reporters, adding that armed police then escorted them out of the neighbourhood.
Shaken by the incident, Sydeek said, “India is a diverse country and everyone should be treated with respect and equality. We don’t want to generalise about Shillong and the people of Meghalaya due to an isolated incident [but] the government and society should take moral responsibility to correct the attackers and get them to the right path.”
Impulse NGO Network filed a complaint with police after the attack.
“The bikers saw them (Thambi and Sydeek) and they shouted and then attacked our interns. They were very scared and with the help of the owners of the restaurant and a few of the people in the area, they were able to escape with minor injuries,” case manager Bariphylla Lyttan said in the complaint, adding that the pair came to Shillong to learn but will now leave the city emotionally scarred.
