LONDON – A group of Saudi students was reportedly chased and assaulted by a mob of Indians in New Delhi earlier this week following a hit-and-run traffic accident.
The Saudi Ministry of Higher Education confirmed the incident on Tuesday when a Saudi student in his car ran over a pedestrian and tried to speed off.
A source at the Ministry of Higher Education denied claims by the Saudi scholarship students at New Delhi’s Hamdard University that the ministry was unconcerned about their plight following the mob attack.
The source told Al-Watan Arabic daily that the ministry has been in contact with the Saudi Embassy and the Cultural Attaché’s office in New Delhi to find out the details of the incident and also to ensure that Saudi students do not encounter any further problems with the Indian authorities or other students at the University.
Jamia Hamdard University, established in 1989, is one of the six universities in the Indian capital.
It offers undergraduate, graduate and PhD courses in Science, Pharmacy, Medicine, Nursing Management studies and IT, Islamic Studies and Social Sciences and Allied Sciences. The University has about 2,000 students from all over India and other countries, and 170 teachers
The source did not give the names of the Saudi students involved in the street fight but said that the student in the car was chased and beaten by an Indian man.
The source said other Saudi students who intervened were beaten up by the crowd of Indians.
The source said the ministry expects every Saudi student sent on scholarship abroad to portray a good image of the Kingdom by respecting the laws and regulations of the host country.
If any Saudi scholarship student abroad is found guilty of wrongdoing, appropriate action would be taken against them according to the regulations, the source said.
The source said that the the Saudi Cultural Attaché’s Office represents the ministry overseas, New Delhi included, and that the students involved in the street violence might be returned to the Kingdom if the Attaché’s Office report proves wrongdoing on their part.