A horrific incident of Islamophobic hate crime was reported from Delhi’s Laxmi Nagar area on October 2, where a group of Malayali Muslim youngsters were allegedly threatened and physically assaulted.

The shocking incident unfolded after six Muslim students from Zakir Husain College, living in a rented apartment in Laxmi Nagar, were put under a curfew of 5 AM to 11 PM after neighbours complained of the residing students creating a disturbance.

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In another incident, four of the students were ousted at midnight by the neighbours and were asked to immediately leave the building premises. They were forced to spend the night at a friend’s place.

On October 2, one of the students was allegedly attacked by the neighbours for refusing to leave the rented place. When Sahal Ameen and Safwan Kudukkan, two of their friends living nearby, visited the place to enquire about the alleged attack, they were threatened and physically assaulted.

A video of the same was shared with Timeline.

During the scuffle, a business partner of a neighbour claimed that according to the rental agreement, Muslims were not allowed to rent there. In a copy of the said agreement shared with Timeline, there is no such clause mentioned. Sahal also said that the neighbours made Islamophobic comments during the altercation.

According to Sahal, the Laxmi Nagar police allegedly showed a biased treatment towards the students who went to file a complaint. When Timeline contacted the police regarding the issue, they called the incident a ‘trivial matter.’

Despite talks of compromise, the students have been asked to vacate the place by October 17.

They now seek police protection amid the ongoing difficulties in finding housing, as Sahal said that their Muslim identity often obstructs them from finding a rental place.

The incident is one of many where Muslim students struggle to find and sometimes, denied accommodation in the national capital.