Five Muslim students face expulsion in Assam over beef controversy; minor, mother arrested
Dispur: Five Muslim students of a government higher secondary school in Assam’s Goalpara district are facing possible expulsion after a controversy erupted over allegations that one of them had brought beef in his tiffin box to school, triggering a hate campaign and raising concerns about discrimination against Muslims.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the incident has already led to the detention of a minor student and the arrest of his mother, a widowed single parent associated with a local self-help group. Police said the minor was taken into custody and later produced before a juvenile court, while his mother was arrested following a complaint filed by the parents of two Hindu students.
The controversy stems from an incident on June 5, when five Muslim students allegedly attempted to share beef brought in a tiffin box with two Hindu classmates.
Subrata Das, president of the School Management Development Committee (SMDC), said a meeting would soon take a final decision on a proposal to expel the five students. He said a consensus emerging from discussions involving school authorities, SMDC members and local organisations favoured their expulsion.
Police have also questioned four other students as part of the investigation.
However, local All Assam Students’ Union leader Manidul Islam disputed the allegations and urged authorities not to deprive the students of their education. He said the boys told him they were sharing food among themselves when two classmates approached and inquired about what they were eating, after which the matter escalated into a major controversy.
Opposing the proposed expulsions, Manidul Islam said students should not become victims of communal tensions and called for efforts to restore harmony and prevent the issue from further polarizing the local community.
The incident has sparked debate over the treatment of Muslim students and comes amid growing concerns among rights activists about increasing hostility toward Muslims in parts of India.
The development follows another recent incident in Assam’s Sribhumi district, where two Muslim cousins, Amir Uddin and Islam Uddin, were assaulted by a Hindutva mob over cattle theft allegations while searching for their missing cattle in a neighbouring village.
