India's foreign ministry says it is
looking into an alleged attack on a Nigerian student by a local man in
the southern city of Hyderabad. 26-year-old
Bamilola Kazim was allegedly assaulted by Mohammed Gafoor after a row
on Wednesday, May 25. He was treated for wounds at a local hospital and
released.
Last
week a student from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Masunda Kitada Oliver was beaten to
death by a group of Indian men after an argument in Delhi.
Two men have been arrested in connection with the killing of the Congolese man.
ndian foreign ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted on Friday
that Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj "had urgently sought report" on
Wednesday's incident from the local government "and is monitoring the
case".
Police said Mr Kazim allegedly parked his car in front of
Mr Gafoor's house, and was attacked with an iron rod by the latter after
an altercation.
Hyderabad police officer K Srinivas told BBC
Hindi's Imran Qureshi that the two men had "reached some understanding"
after Mr Gafoor was arrested and released on bail.
Gideon Omodowale of the local Nigerian Students Association said it was a "small issue".
"He [Mr Gafoor] has apologised and we have also forgiven him. It happens," he told the BBC.
Following
last week's killing of an African student in Delhi, a group of African
embassies had said they did not want to participate in Africa Day
celebrations on Thursday because of repeated attacks on African students
in India.
"This is because the
African community in India, including students, are in a state of
mourning in memory of the slain African students in the last few years,
including Mr Oliver," said Alem Tsehage Woldermariam, Dean of African
Group of Heads of Mission.
They
later relented after Ms Swaraj promised to ensure the safety of African
students in India. He said the Indian government had received news from
its embassy in
Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of Congo, that some
"Indian establishments and shops were attacked on 23 and 25 May as a
reaction perhaps to the killing of the Congolese national" in Delhi.
"It has been reported that by Wednesday, things have calmed down," Mr Swarup was quoted as saying by The Hindu newspaper.
Source: BBC News