India strongly condemns assault on Indian student in Canada, calls for prompt action

The Consulate General of India in Vancouver has strongly condemned the assault on an Indian student in Canada’s British Columbia province and called for prompt action against perpetrators.

The 17-year-old student was either "bear or pepper sprayed" by another teenage student after exiting a public transit bus on his way home on September 11.

The Indian student was assaulted at the intersection of Rutland Rd S and Robson Rd E in Canada's British Columbia, according to a statement by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

In a post shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Consulate General of India in Vancouver stated, "@cgivancouver strongly condemns assault on an Indian national in Kelowna and requests Canadian authorities to investigate the incident and take prompt action against the perpetrators."

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in a statement said, "On September 11th, 2023, just before 4pm, Kelowna RCMP were dispatched to a pepper spray incident at the intersection of Rutland Rd S and Robson Rd E. Officers determined a 17-year old student was either bear or pepper sprayed by another teenaged male after exiting a public transit bus on his way home."

It said there was an altercation on the bus prior to the bear spray incident which resulted in those involved being directed off the bus. Police said that several witness statements have been obtained and the teenaged suspect has been identified.

“After exiting the bus, a second incident occurred where the suspect male deployed bear spray on the victim," it said.

The statement further said, "Bystanders called the police who attended and are actively investigating this incident. Several witness statements have been obtained and the teenaged suspect in this incident has already been identified."

According to the statement, investigators are still collecting CCTV evidence and other relevant information including taking steps to determine the motivation behind crime.

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