Indian attacked, set ablaze in Melbourne (Second Lead)

MELBOURNE - An Indian man was attacked and set ablaze by four unidentified men while he was parking his car in the northwestern part of this city early Saturday, a week after an Indian youth was fatally stabbed here. The Australian government condemned the incident but maintained it was not racially motivated.

Jaspreet Singh, 29, was attacked in Essendon in Melbourne shortly before 2.00 a.m. He is said to be in a stable condition in Alfred Hospital with burns to 20 percent of his body, ABC News online reported.

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

According to the police, as the man was getting out of the car, four men attacked him, pushed him back against the vehicle and poured an unidentified fluid on him. One of the men then ignited the fluid with a lighter and all four fled, The Age newspaper said.

The victim reportedly ran from the car while peeling off his clothes.

Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard said the federal government condemned all violence, regardless of motivation.

“The government condemns all acts of violence in the strongest possible way,” Gillard was quoted as saying by the Herald Sun.

“This matter remains under investigation by the Victoria police,” she said adding that the government would not comment further until the police provided more information.

Melbourne is the capital of the state of Victoria. Victoria Minister Peter Batchelor said the incident is concerning.

“Whether it is racially motivated or whether it is for some other reason such as theft or some other crime related factor, it diminishes our community, it diminishes us all and we’re totally opposed to it,” he said.

Police say the man is of Indian origin but they do not know whether he is an Australian citizen. Friends say Jaspreet Singh is living in the city on a spouse visa, ABC News said.

Neighbours across the street said they heard the car explode into flames but didn’t notice any kind of fight or disturbance. 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 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.

Crime squad investigators say the circumstances leading up to the 29-year-old being set on fire Saturday are “unusual” - but not racially motivated, the Herald Sun reported.

“I believe there’s no reason at this stage to consider this in any way racially motivated,” said Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth.

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 this country.

Gautam Gupta from the Federation of Indian Students of Australia said the attacks are unacceptable.

“We are extremely disturbed, we have contacted the prime minister’s office and have suggested that they intervene, it’s high time they intervene,” he said. “How many times are they going to just dodge this issue?”