The White House reacted on the recent attacks on Indian students in the United States and called it unacceptable in the country.
Washington, DC: ‘No excuse for violence based on race, gender, or any other factor,’ said the White House on the recent attacks on Indian students in the United States, terming it unacceptable in the country. During a press brief on Thursday, the Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council in the White House, John Kirby, said that President Joe Biden and the government have been working very hard to try to thwart and disrupt the attacks on Indian Students.
Responding to a question about recent attacks on Indian students and concerns among parents to them to the US for study, Kirby said, “There’s no excuse for violence, certainly not based on race, gender or religion or any other factor. That’s just unacceptable here in the United States and the President and his administration has been working very, very hard to make sure we’re doing everything we can to work with state and local authorities to try to thwart and disrupt those kinds of attacks and make it clear to anybody who might consider them that they’ll be held properly accountable.”
It is worth noting that the statement comes amid the increasing attacks and deaths of Indians and Indian-Americans in the US.
Attacks on Indian Students in US
On February 7, a 41-year-old Indian-origin man died days after suffering severe injuries following an assault in downtown Washington. The victim was identified as Vivek Taneja of Alexandria, Virginia, police said.
As per police report, the dreadful incident took place on February 2 at around 2:00 a.m. (local time), Taneja was rushed to the hospital for treatment but succumbed to injuries on February 7.
“On Friday, February 2, 2024, at approximately 2:00 a.m., Second District officers responded to the listed location for reports of an assault. Upon arrival, officers located an adult male suffering from life-threatening injuries as a result of an assault. The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment,” the Metropolitan Police Department’s official release said.
The Metropolitan Police in Washington, DC, has been seeking public assistance in identifying the killer.
An Indian student was attacked in Chicago on February 4. Following the attack, the Indian Consulate reacted on the incident and stated that it was in touch with the victim, Syed Mazahir Ali, as well as his wife in India.
Videos on social media that surfaced showed Ali bleeding heavily as he described the horrific incident. Meanwhile, another video circulating on social media, which appears to be CCTV footage of the incident, showed Ali being chased by three attackers on the streets of Chicago.
Earlier this month, an Indian student in the United States named Shreyas Reddy was found dead in Cincinnati, Ohio. The cause of his death, however, remains unknown as of now. According to reports, Reddy was a student at the Linder School of Business.
On January 30, Neel Acharya, a student at Purdue University, was found dead after being missing for days, according to the Tippecanoe County Coroner.
Earlier, another Indian student, identified as Vivek Saini, was brutally killed with repeated blows from a hammer by a homeless man inside a store in Lithonia, Georgia, US. A video of the incident went viral on social media, but the date of the incident can’t be confirmed.