An attempted murder case has been filed against Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union general secretary Salahuddin Ammar and eight named people over the alleged beating of student Mahmudul Hasan Mahin at the university’s central library. Mahin’s father, M. S. Asad Uz Zaman, filed the case at the Motihar police magistrate court in Rajshahi district on July 30. The case also names another 17 to 18 unidentified accused.

According to the complaint, the incident occurred inside and outside the central library between 12:30pm and 1pm on July 27, while Mahin was studying there. It alleges that 19 to 20 people armed with local weapons surrounded and attacked him with intent to kill. Ammar is accused of repeatedly striking Mahin’s head and forehead with an iron rod, while other named accused are alleged to have injured his eye, chest, back and other parts of his body.

The complaint further alleges that several accused tried to suffocate Mahin after he fell to the ground and beat him again after pulling him from an ambulance. He was later admitted to hospital. The accused’s lawyer, Advocate Hazrat Ali, said the court did not immediately take cognizance of the case and sent it to the Police Bureau of Investigation for inquiry.