India Warns Australia Of Long Term Consequences Of Attacks

Melbourne: Indian High Commissioner to Australia has reportedly met Australian Governor-General, warning of long term consequences unless more action was taken to prevent attacks against the Indians and pointed that the Victoria was in “a state of denial”. The new development came after Victorian premier John Brumby yesterday lashed out Indian media and some government officials for “unbalanced views on the ongoing attacks”.

According to a newspaper report, top Indian envoy Sujatha Singh had sought a meeting with Bryce in Sydney last Friday.

She has believed to have told the Governor-General Quentin Bryce that Australia is not racist but warned of long term effect unless more action was taken to prevent attacks.

The report said while she applauded the role of police in NSW, Queensland and South Australia for handling racist attacks, Victoria was taking too long to respond and was in a state of “denial” over the severity of the attacks.

Citing more than 100 incidents of racist violence against Indians, she told Bryce Victorian authorities were in denial over the scale of the attacks.

The report said even as Victorian police have repeatedly said they do not record the ethnicity of assault victims, a spokesman yesterday was unable to confirm Singh’s claimed number of incidents.

The 29-year-old Jaspreet Singh of Grice Crescent, Essendon, was charged yesterday with making a false report and criminal damage with a view to gaining financial advantage over the car fire.

Police told a bail justice that Singh was in financial difficulty and stood to gain AUSD 11,000 in insurance from the incident.

He was bailed to appear in Melbourne Magistrates Court on March 15.

Sharply reacting on the latest developemnt, Victorian Premier yesterday commented “I hope that there is some balance to the debate, some balance to the reporting in India, and certainly to date that balance hasn’t been there”.

Brumby said the point needed to be made that the people charged with the murder of Indian Ranjodh Singh in NSW were Indian.

The Indian High Commission declined to comment on the meeting between Singh and Bryce.

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