A shopping trip at National Market turned into a nightmare for a Nigerian after she got into an altercation with a shopkeeper, which subsequently led to her being restrained by the police with a rope and taken to K.C. General hospital where she was sedated.
The woman, in her late 20s, was identified as Mariam. She was accompanied by a man. According to witnesses, Mariam stopped at a mobile phone store inside the busy market around 2.45 p.m. on Monday. When the shopkeeper did not attend to her, she reportedly banged the glass counter twice.
“She was told not to do, as the glass might break. Hearing this, she banged the counter again. The glass broke, leaving her with wounds on her hands,” said a witness who was near the shop at the time of the incident.
Almost immediately, shopkeepers gathered around the couple. A heated argument ensued. Someone alerted the Upparpet police. When they tried to pacify the lady, she allegedly attacked them. The police restrained her with a rope and bundled the couple into an auto. They were taken to K.C. General Hospital in Malleswaram for a medical test. At the hospital, when asked to get down from the auto, the woman allegedly again turned violent and created a ruckus. Efforts to calm her were unsuccessful.
A hospital staff member said, “She was attacking everyone who approached her. Later, when she was arguing with the police, someone came from behind and threw a bed sheet over her. Then she was sedated.” K.M. Satish Kumar, psychiatrist, K.C. General Hospital, accompanied her to NIMHANS. He told The Hindu that he had reported the case, symptoms and incident to the emergency ward at NIMHANS and got her admitted there. The woman is expected to undergo tests in the morning.
K.C. General Hospital staff insisted that she was treated professionally and only necessary action was taken to subdue her. NIMHANS officials confirmed that the lady was drowsy and that tests would be carried out in the morning.
Racial tension: past instances
*March 9, 2015: 20-member gang attacks half a dozen Africans in Byrati near Hennur Road.
*June 20, 2015: African students accuse college in east Bengaluru of refusing to return their passport or issue certificates, NOC and other documents.
*January 31, 2016: 21-year-old Tanzanian student stripped and paraded naked by a mob following an accident near Hessaraghatta Road.
*February 21, 2016: Police register case against seven Africans belonging to two groups for violence and alleged assault on policemen and locals.
