Moradabad: A 19-year-old Muslim student of Hindu College in Uttar Pradesh‘s Moradabad was severely injured after his classmates allegedly tried setting him on fire in a ‘prank’ outside the campus on Thursday, January 8.
Farhad Ali was coming out of the college after writing an exam when his classmates, Deepak Kumar, 20, and Aarush Singh, 21, allegedly hurled an inflammable substance and set him on fire.
The flames spread across Ali’s clothes, triggering panic on the campus. Onlookers immediately tried to douse the blaze with water and rushed Ali to the hospital. He suffered eight per cent burn injuries on his legs and thighs. Police claim he is currently stable.
Kumar and Singh have since been arrested.
It was a prank, insist Moradabad police
Speaking to Siasat.com, Moradabad City Superintendent of Police (SP) Ranvijay Singh insisted the incident was a “prank gone wrong,” and that the accused, Kumar and Singh, had “no ill intentions.”
“It was a prank like kids do to make a video. A case was booked due to the injuries suffered by the victim. They have been arrested and sent to judicial custody,” the SP said.
The officer said the two accused had committed a similar attack on another classmate named Dhruv Thakur, who “suffered no injuries.”
“Farhad Ali was also taken to the hospital by Deepak. They got scared and immediately took him to the hospital,” SP Singh added.
He further stated that initially, the parents had asked for the case to be dissolved.
Victim rejects police’s version
Rejecting the police’s ‘prank’ narrative, an injured Ali stated it was a “deliberate attack.” Speaking to Times of India from the hospital on Saturday, January 10, he said, “They intentionally poured petrol on me from a white bottle and set me on fire. Police are saying the oil fell accidentally. If it was accidental, why did they use a lighter?”
He alleged that while Sigh attacked him, Kumar provided the petrol.
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