Tension continued to simmer between the African community and Delhiites on Monday as another confrontation was reported close to where a Congolese man was bludgeoned to death a week ago.
An Ola Cab driver, Nooruddin, was thrashed allegedly by six Africans for refusing to take more than four of them in his car. They allegedly inflicted severe injuries on the driver’s face. He managed to hold on to one of the assailants, a woman, with the help of some truckers passing by, while the other five fled. The arrested woman has been identified as Nefa, a 26-year-old Rwandan.
In Goa, police arrested a Nigerian national accused in the rape of a woman from Parra in north Goa. The accused was arrested at Panvel.
President’s concern
Addressing the delegates of 7th Annual Heads of Mission Conference, President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday expressed concern over the string of attacks on Africans, saying it would be most unfortunate if the people of India were to “dilute our long tradition of friendship with the people of Africa.”
The President said the attacks were painful to him personally since as a student, political activist and MP he had seen first-hand how India and Africa have always been close partners.
Cab driver was assaulted for sticking to rules
The Delhi police on Monday registered a case of assault, wrongful restraint and robbery at the Mehrauli police station after six persons from Africa allegedly assaulted a cab driver for refusing to take all of them in the same taxi.
Noorduddin, a 51-year-old Ola cab driver, had received a pick-up request from Rajpur Khurd village in South Delhi early on Monday.
At the pick-up spot, he found six Africans, including two women, wanting to be dropped to Dwarka.“I told them that the car could accommodate only four, but they forcefully entered the car and asked me to drive, saying two of them would get off at the nearest main road,” said Mr. Nooruddin.
The driver claimed that when they reached near the Bikaner sweet shop on a main road in Chhatarpur, he halted the car and insisted that they stick to the four-passenger rule. That irked the Africans whereupon they allegedly attacked him.
Goa arrest
Based on a complaint by a woman of alleged kidnapping and rape on Saturday, the Goa police arrested a Nigerian from Panvel. Superintendent of Police (North) Umesh Gaonkar told The Hindu on Monday that a police team caught the accused while he was escaping from Goa in a train.
According to the police, the victim was travelling towards Parra on her bike when she was waved down by two Nigerians. When she halted, one of the two got onto her bike and forced her at knifepoint to drive to his room. The frightened woman rode to his room at Assagao, where he raped her.
