Muzaffarpur, Aug. 27: A group of 35 engineering students belonging to the Muzaffarpur Institute of Technology (MIT) went on the rampage this afternoon.

The angry MIT students assaulted drivers, conductors and cleaners of private bus agencies — Amar-Jyoti, Jai Mata Di, Shahi Tripati and Om Travel — at Bairiya bus stand under Ahiyapur police station.

The MIT students came with hockey sticks, cricket bats, wickets and iron rods to the bus stand and started smashing the glasses of the buses.

The students beat up drivers, conductors and cleaners of the buses, who were left stunned at the violence of the engineering students.

Shopkeepers and hawkers on the bus stand premises left the scene of the incident expecting trouble.

Several passengers seated inside the buses were spared by the violent mob and they remained mute spectators to the incident.

The bus employees at the stand ran for safety and concealed their identities to avoid the backlash of the MIT students.

The group of students damaged nearly 12 buses parked at the bus stand. They managed to flee after beating up the bus employees and threatened the bus operators with dire consequences.

Bus employees Sanjay Kumar Singh, Bhola Singh, Nathu Sahni, Basawan Prasad, Lallan Singh, belonging to private bus agencies sustained head and body injuries. The injured have been admitted to a private nursing home.

Sanjay Kumar, one of the injured persons told The Telegraph that the students were protesting against the misconduct meted out to a MIT student by an employee of a private bus plying on the Muzaffarpur-Sitamarhi road.

Deputy superintendent of police (city) S. S. Thakur arrived at the site to take stock of the situation after the students fled.

Thakur said that the employee of a private bus had assaulted Mukesh Kumar, an engineering student. This infuriated Mukesh’s classmates, who raided the bus stand to avenge the misbehaviour against Mukesh.

Ahiyapur police have lodged an FIR against the unidentified MIT students.

Investigations are on to decide what action would be taken against the engineering students.