The assault on 21-year-old Assamese student Arbazuddin on Thursday in Delhi's Amar Colony was not racist, as the attackers presumed him to be a thief breaking into someone's house, the Delhi Police said on Monday.
The victim, who was under the influence of liquor, was trying to get into the house thinking it was his own, and when he couldn't open it with his key, tried to break open the lock. The noise alerted the house-owner and neighbours who attacked him before calling the police.
"We got a PCR call around 1:30 AM from locals that they have caught a thief. A team rushed to the spot and took him to the hospital," IBNLive quoted a senior police official as saying.
During investigation, the police found that both Arbazuddin's house and the one he was trying to break into were in the same locality and on the same (first) floor, causing the confusion.
However, his mother is not willing to believe the police and insisted that it was a racial attack, because of his North-East origin.
"He was beaten up in the balcony and in the temple grounds. Neighbours claim that they didn't hear anything. My son called me at night and narrated the story. My son said he was beaten as he was from north east," his mother said.
His uncle also said Arbazuddin had told him about several minor incidents that has been happening with him for quite some time now.
"He was beaten up in the balcony and in the temple grounds. Neighbours claim that they didn't hear anything. My son called me at night and narrated the story. My son said he was beaten as he was from north east," his mother said.
Arbazuddin is currently undergoing treatment for fractures sustained on his jaw, hands and legs, at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.
Meanwhile, the police have registered a case based on the victim's statement and are looking at the CCTV footage from the nearby area to ascertain the truth.
