Indian man set on fire in Melbourne

MELBOURNE - An Indian man was allegedly attacked and set on fire by four men while he was parking his car in the northwestern part of the city in the early hours of Saturday. The attack comes a week after an Indian youth was fatally stabbed in this city.

The 29-year-old was taken to hospital with burns to 15 percent of his body after the attack shortly before 2 a.m. in Essendon and was said to be in a serious condition, The Age newspaper reported.

Police were told the man had dropped his wife at home and gone to park his car after a dinner party when he was attacked in Grice Crescent.

As the man was getting out of the car, four men attacked him, pushing him back against the vehicle and pouring an unidentified fluid on him, police said.

One of the men then ignited the fluid with a lighter and all four fled, police said.

The victim reportedly ran from the car while peeling off his clothes. He suffered burns to his arms, chest and face, the daily said.

The latest attack comes a week after 21-year-old Indian graduate Nitin Garg was stabbed to death in a Yarraville park Jan 2. He staggered to Hungry Jack’s restaurant — where he worked — and pleaded for help before collapsing. He was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital where he died.

A police spokesperson said investigators did not yet show any motive for the Essendon attack.

“They don’t believe it was racially motivated at this stage,” she said.

The incident is being investigated by the arson and explosives squad.

Police have appealed for public assistance to find the victim’s clothes, which he shed as he ran. The man is in stable condition in The Alfred hospital, The Age said.

After the fatal stabbing of Nitin Garg, India’s external affairs ministry had issued an advisory asking Indians studying in Australia and those planning to do so to take extra security precautions while moving around in that country.