Krishna to brief PM on Indian student attacks in Australia

New Delhi, June 2 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna will meet the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, this evening to brief him on the steps being taken by the Australian Government to tackle the issue of racially-motivated attacks on Indian students studying in that country.

Krishna will also brief Dr. Singh on the recent upsurge in the attacks.

The meeting on Tuesday evening is taking place even as another Indian student was attacked by a group of males in Frankston in Melbourne after they stopped him and demanded money and cigarettes.

Nardeep Singh, a nursing student at Chisholm College was slashed with a Stanley knife carried by one of the group, a Victoria Police spokeswoman said.

Police said the attack happened at 1.30 around midnight as Singh was leaving the college. Five males confronted him as he crossed the car park.

Singh, a non-smoker, did not handover his money or cigarettes as they demanded, and was slashed across the chest with a knife.

Police said his injury was minor and he did not need hospital treatment.

Singh has been in Australia for just two months. The victim is from Ludhiana in Punjab.

The Prime Minister spoke to his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd again on Tuesday, three days after they last had a conversation, to express concern over hate crimes against Indian students there.

After six racial attacks against Indians in Australia, New Delhi has taken up the issue at the highest level.

The issue has also created ripples in the Australian Parliament, where Prime Minister Rudd has reassured New Delhi that Australia isn"t a racist nation, and promised that the culprits behind the attacks on Indian students are brought to book.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna has confirmed that Dr. Singh expressed his displeasure to Kevin Rudd.

Talking to a private TV channel, Krishna said, that the Indian mission in Australia has been asked to be in close touch with the student community so that any such incident would be immediately brought to the notice of the Australian government.

The attacks have been occurring for more than a year but came into focus last weekend when a student named Sravan Kumar Theerthala was left fighting for his life after being stabbed with a screwdriver.

Australian Police have repeatedly denied that racial hatred was a factor in the attacks by contending that Indian students were often simply in the wrong time at the wrong place as they travelled home late at night with items such as mobile phones and IPods. (ANI)