Bengaluru: The alleged attack and stripping of an African girl by a mob on the outskirts of Bengaluru has hit national headlines. There is no doubt that it is a highly condemnable act.
An innocent 21-year-old girl from Tanzania was allegedly dragged out of her car, beaten, stripped and paraded semi-naked in a case of mistaken identity. Her car was also set on fire by the same mob. Bengaluru Police Commissioner NS Megharik has ruled out a racist attack, describing it as an incident of road rage. Whatever may be the truth, this particular incident is despicable and demands strict action.
Bengaluru has been one of India's vibrant, cosmopolitan cities for a long time. The African students have been studying at various educational institutions across Bengaluru and rest of Karnataka for the past over 50 years. With the education sector boom, their number has increased by many folds in the last 20 years. The large scale arrival of the African students into Bengaluru and other parts of the state has created many other problems, for both the locals and the expats.
According to a top city police official most African students studying in Bengaluru are from Central African nations. They are studying in medical, engineering, management, banking, science & technology, humanities colleges etc.
At least 30% of them are women. But, there are some Africans who came to Bengaluru on student visa, later get into illegal activities like drug peddling, robbery, burglary, prostitution, online fraud etc. The tension between the locals and the expats has been brewing for a long time and even a minor incident triggers outrage, sometimes harming innocent Africans.
Speaking to IBNLive another police officer said, "Some of them come here posing as students. Their intentions are malafide. They are into all kinds of anti-social activities. Most of the online frauds are committed by the Nigerians and a few from Burkina Faso. If we try to bust their racket, they complain that Indians are racist and harassing innocent Africans. It is a tight rope walk for us. Many hardcore criminals also play victim."
He admits that many innocent African students also get into trouble because of some of their fellow Africans are involved in illegal activities. A Nigerian who openly runs a drug racket also once played victim after he was raided by the police.
Most African students live together depending on their nationality and tribe. Many landlords don't give their houses on rent to African students for various reasons.
Mrs Reddy, a landlord said, "I don't entertain them. If they do some illegal activities, I get into trouble. Some of my neighbours give them houses on a much higher rent. They just want to make money. Once an African student refused to pay the rent. When the landlord called up the police, the same boy told the police that landlord called him a Negro. The police refused to help the landlord saying that it might land them in trouble."
Is not she unfair to all African students? "May be. But how do I know who is good and who is bad?" she replies. A single woman who stays in an area full of Africans says that many of them are into drugs and prostitution. She even blames police for their inaction.
She says that these African students party till late night disturbing the sleep of neighbours and when they protest, they make it a racist issue. "They have no respect for the local culture and customs. Sometimes, they roam the streets semi naked. Is not it racism? When you go abroad, you are expected to follow their culture and customs. It is a reverse racism," she asserts.
A police officer with the Foreigners Section claims that there are thousands of Africans who have overstayed even after the expiry of their visa. “It is very difficult to trace and deport them. Some have even obtained forged documents," he said.
The city police are also working with the representatives of African community to educate them about local customs and traditions. They admit that most Africans are very friendly and law abiding. They agree that the attack on Tanzanian girl student is brutal and has certainly brought a bad name to the city.
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