By IANS,
New Delhi: Feb 24 (IANS) As many as 153 cases of attacks have been confirmed against Indian nationals, including students and taxi drivers in the last 14 months in Australia, Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna told parliament Wednesday.
In a written statement in the Lok Sabha, Krishna said the Indian government was “deeply concerned” about the plight of Indian nationals in Australia.
“The government of India has reiterated that it is the responsibility of the government of Australia to ensure that such attacks cease forthwith,” he said.
The Indian High Commission gave a list of assaults, province wise, from January 2009 to Feb 19, 2010.
The Australian province of Victoria recorded the largest number of assaults during this period at over 122, including 49 against Indian students and 18 against taxi drivers.
Besides, there were 55 such incidents with other Indian nationals in Victoria, ranging from robbery to assault.
While all the cases were confirmed, a few of the attackers in some incidents were also identified as “Indian in appearance”.
“At the instance of the government of India, the government of Australia has taken several important measures aimed at enhancing the safety and security of our students, both at the state as well as the federal level, which have been useful,” said Krishna.
He added that the Indian mission was “proactively” following up these incidents very closely and has been in regular liaison with members of the Indian community.
Besides, the minister also listed incidents of attacks against Indians in other countries, but noted that there was no “evidence to indicate a consistent rise in the recent past of such incidents either in Australia or other countries”.