New Delhi: Thousands of angry and upset students and supporters of Indians protesting racial attacks on Indians in Australia held a march in Melbourne.
CNN-IBN spoke to Gautam Gupta, Head of the Federation of Indian Students of Australia, who said that the huge turnout at the rally showed that Indians could not be pushed around. Gautam said, "The mood of the rally was very angry and upset. They were deeply concerned. This rally is a great opportunity for students to vent their anger. We were four0five thousand students at the rally. This was the biggest gathering of Indian students in Australian history. There were students from all walks of life. There were some settled Australian Indians, there were Australians, there were presidents of various universities. There were mainstream Australian who said they accepted the message of peace and joined hands with us and made speeches, calmed people down. They believe non-violence and non-co-operation as the most movement. The rally has shown that we have the numbers and that we are not soft targets. If we are targeted again, it may get out of hand. The message has been sent and I am sure the civil government will take some action now.
Meanwhile. the family of Indian student Rajesh Kumar from Haryana who was hurt in a racist attack in Australia is angry that the Australian government's response is too little, too late.
Rajesh Kumar Nehra a student from Haryana studying in Australia was attacked in Sydney. He has suffered 30 per cent burn injuries after a petrol bomb was hurled into his home.
"Somebody hurled a petrol bomb in the house where he was staying and he sustained burn injuries. His friends wrapped him in a blanket and admitted him to a hospital," said Rajesh's sister Neelam.
His mother Amarjeet questioned lack of preventive action by Australian authorities.
"When safety is suspect, why should we send our children to Australia? The Australian government should stop issuing visas to people to visit their country. Is earning revenue the only concern of the Australian government?" asked Amarjeet.
Meanwhile, the condition of grievously injured Indian student Sravan Kumar has shown slight improvement.
Sravan's cousin Narsimha spoke to CNN-IBN on phone.
"Doctors say that Sravan's condition has improved a bit. Now he is able to feel the stimulus but is not responding to commands. Doctors are not certain about anything. They are giving their best and they are just waiting and watching, that's all. They are not giving any kind of assurance as of now. We are getting good support from the Indian community and also from the High Commission. Doctor's described it as: he is a critical condition but stable as he is showing signs of improvement," said Narsimha.
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