Attacks on African Students in India – A Critical Review

Students from various African countries, residing in Noida, UP. The locals of Greater Noida, UP lashed out at 'Nigerians' on 27th March, 2017. It all started with a protest against Greater Noida police releasing five Nigeria-born students because of lack of evidence. They were accused of causing the death of 16-year-old Manish Khari, who allegedly died of drug overdose in a private hospital on Sunday. With the result at least three African students were admitted to different hospitals for treatment. The natural aftermath of these attacks, a group of African students in the city has only one question to ask, "Isn't India the country in whose independence, non-violence played a crucial role? Have Indians completely forgotten Mahatma Gandhi's values?" While the attacks on African Students jolted the African community living in Delhi-NCR once again, the African students ask us that though they may have learnt to live with our prejudices, will India ever accept them beyond their colour? Days after attacks on African students in Greater Noida, a group of Indian and African students came together for a friendly football match on Friday at Sharda University. "There is a lack of cultural awareness, cultural mingling, cultural assimilation and a lack of understanding of other cultures. That's why we need more initiatives like this. This was the first initiative in which we tried getting them (Indian and international students) closer. We will be organizing more such programmes in the future." The chancellor of Sharda University, PK Gupta, said, "Racism is still prevalent in India, so we need to organize more such programmes to bridge the gap between the Indians and the Africans".