Tanzanian woman thrashed, stripped over ‘mishap’ in B’luru

A Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of ‘mistaken identity’ after a woman was mowed down by a car here.

The 21-year-old Tanzanian persuing BBM course was dragged out of a car, in which she was sitting with three of her friends. The mob stopped their car after they reached an accident spot on Sunday night, according to the All-African Students Union in Bengaluru.

The woman was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape their fury, the Union’s Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi told reporters here.

Her three other friends were also beaten up.

He said she had no connection with the accident which happened much before and alleged that the police "was not so helpful" when they were approached.

Police Commissioner NS Megharikh said that after the accident, which claimed the life of a 35-year old woman, the driver of the car was assaulted and was taken to a hospital.

He said the Tanzanian woman and her friends had reached the spot later, adding that the mob mistook them for having been responsible for the mishap.

"It was mistaken identity," the city police chief said. The driver of the car which mowed down the woman is in police custody.

Megharikh said the woman's statement had been recorded by the Deputy Commissioner of Police. "We have taken up the case for assault on the woman," he said. A section relating to molestation had also been invoked, he added.

He said a mob of 200 to 300 people were present after the accident but the police had brought the situation under control after the mishap.

Megharikh said the police were trying to identify the people involved and they would be arrested.