Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took up the killing of an Indian driver in Brisbane with his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull. Modi said there was concern in India over the incident, in which 29-year old Manmeet Alisher was burnt alive behind the steering wheel of a bus on Friday.
Turnbull expressed shock over the killing and assured Modi that the matter was being investigated. Modi had called to wish Turnbull for Diwali. Earlier, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had said that India would take up Alisher's immolation with the Australian government.
On October 28, Alisher was burnt alive after a passenger threw an incendiary device at him. Officials had said it was a random attack, and there was no evidence to suggest it was an effect of terrorism or racism. A 48-year-old man had been arrested for the crime.
Alisher, who came from Punjab's Sangrur district, was also a popular singer among members of the community in Australia. Six passengers, who were trapped in the burning bus, had a narrow escape till a taxi driver in the vicinity broke open the back door of the vehicle to help them escape.
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