A 29-year-old man of Indian origin was set ablaze by a group of four attackers here on Saturday, a week after a student from the country was stabbed to death amid a slew of assaults on the community in Australia. The man, who suffered 15 per cent burns including on his arms, chest and face, was admitted to ‘The Alfred’ hospital after he was attacked in Melbourne’s Essendon area.
As per local news reports one Jaspreet Singh and his wife left a dinner party in Essendon, and drove to their nearby home in Grice Crescent. He dropped his wife at home and had gone to park his car when he was attacked. Police said that as he was getting out of the car, four men attacked him and poured an unknown fluid on him. One of the men then ignited the fluid with a lighter before all the attackers fled. The victim, who is now in a stable condition in the hospital, ran from the car while peeling off his clothes, ‘The Age’ reported.
This is the third attack on an Indian in Australia within the span of ten days and still the Australian Police say that these are not ‘racial attacks’ in nature?
Commenting on the recent attack on Indian in Australia, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that it was following the matter vigorously with Australian authorities. The attack comes a week after the stabbing death of 21-year-old Indian graduate Nitin Garg in a Yarraville park while he was on his way to his part-time job in a restaurant.
A few days later the burnt body of Ranjodh Singh was spotted by a paser by near Wilga Road in Willbriggie in the neighbouring state of New South Wales on December 29. The incident was reported earlier this week.
Police investigating the alleged attack on a 29-year-old man in Essendon do not believe at this stage that this incident is racially motivated.
At a press conference earlier in Essendon, Crime Department Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth said, “We are investigating all possibilities but early indication show it was not racially motivated.” The ABC reported that the man is of Indian origin. Police appealed for public assistance to locate the victim’s clothes, which he shed as he fled the scene.
It is a matter of concern that, in spite of serious and concerted efforts by the Australian Government to deal with this issue to address India’s concerns, these attacks are continuing, and have even resulted in fatalities.
The Government of India have been seriously concerned at the series of attacks on Indian students, as well as members of the Indian community, in Australia over the past few years, especially at the increasing incidents of assaults since May 2009. The most recent incidents resulting in the tragic deaths of Indian citizens only underline the need for addressing these concerns at the earliest.
India’s High Commissioner in Australia has conveyed to the Australian Government the importance of addressing the concerns raised by these attacks, and the need for prompt and speedy action in finding and charging the perpetrators and ascertaining the reasons behind the attacks.
The Government of India hopes that the series of measures already promised by the Australian authorities as to better policing and better surveillance in crime-prone areas are increased and kept in place, until such time as the attacks cease, and the Indian community in Australia is reassured about its safety and security.
The High Commission of India in Canberra and the Consulate General in Melbourne and Sydney are in regular touch with the concerned authorities both at the Federal and State levels in Australia.