Three Indian nationals in their twenties have been charged with the attempted murder of Praveen Reddy, the 26-year-old university student from Hyderabad, who was stabbed on Friday and is battling for his life in a London hospital.
Identified as Mareshwar Arava ( 25) , Sai Kishore Balguri ( 25) and Nishanth Puttapaka (23) all three were arrested from the same East London address where Praveen lived-- and where police believe he was stabbed.
They will be produced in a magistrates’ court on Monday. Police sources sought to highlight their nationality to scotch speculation in the Indian media that Praveen was a victim of a racist attack.
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"We are not treating the attack as racially motivated,’’ repeated a Scotland spokesman.
The three are among the 11 people arrested at the weekend. Seven were later released on bail and one ``without further action’’, police said.
Praveen remained in a critical condition.
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Son of a Hyderabad businessman, Sudhakar Reddy, Praveen was studying for an MBA at the London Business School and lived in Plaistow, a suburb in the East London borough of Newham. He was found stabbed outside the apartment which he reportedly shared with a group of other fellow Indians.
Police learned of the incident when they were called to Newham General Hospital on Friday morning where Praveen had been admitted with stab wounds. Police said investigations were continuing but declined to give details.