According to The Daily Telegraph newspaper, Bipin Shrestha is in induced coma in Royal North Shore Hospital in the Australian city. He has fractures to his cheeks and eye sockets. His brain was bleeding when the police took him to the hospital. According to Manly Daily news, a hospital spokesman said yesterday Shrestha was in a “serious but stable” condition. [break]
The police said that two youths – Melenga Kanongataa, 19 and another unnamed 17-year old – beat him to the ground, punching his head and body, and stomped him when they got him there. Both the youths have been denied bail by a local court.
Shrestha is in Australia to study accountancy and works three jobs to pay for his studies.
According to the newspaper, he rose before light each morning to wash down the tables and chairs at the center before leaving to do his studies. In the afternoon he was back to clean the butcher shop before moving on to a pizza shop that finished at 10.30 each night.
His address is Nepal is not known yet.
This is the first time a Nepali has been attacked. It comes at a time when racial attacks against Indians, particularly students, are growing. The Indian government recently issued a travel warning against Australia. The Australian government denies the attacks are racial in nature.
At present there are nearly 17,000 Nepali citizens in Australia, most of them students in the country’s colleges and universities.
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