Outrage Over Attack On Swiss Couple, 2 Ministers Write To Yogi Adityanath
Reported by Ashmika Singh, NDTV
A Swiss couple was left wounded on the road after being chased by a group of men and attacked with sticks and stones in Fatehpur Sikri near Agra on Sunday, a day after they visited the Taj Mahal. Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and Tourism Minister KJ Alphons have written to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on the brutal assault, which has left the man with a fractured skull and partial hearing loss. A third minister, Mahesh Sharma, has called it a “matter of shame for us”.
One man has been arrested for the attack that dimmed the spectacle of Yogi Adityanath’s first visit as Chief Minister to the Taj Mahal today, where he also clicked photos with foreign tourists.
Quentin Jeremy Clerc is in Delhi’s Apollo hospital with a clot in the brain; a nerve in his ear has also been affected.
Clerc and his girlfriend Marie Droxz, both 24, had arrived in Agra on September 30 from Lausanne in Switzerland.
After visiting the Taj, they were in the historic Fatehpur Sikri town on Sunday when they were attacked.
Four young men followed them for an hour, shouted comments and tried to engage them in conversation. Eventually they grew bolder, blocked their way and forcibly took selfies with Ms Droxz.
Mr Clerc alleges that he was hit repeatedly with a stick until he fell to the ground. Ms Droxz was also attacked and her arm was broken. Bystanders allegedly took videos of the couple on their mobile phones as they lay on the ground.
Some of the attackers have been identified, say the police.
“Some of them could be minors, so we are investigating and if they are indeed minors, they will be produced in juvenile court,” senior officer Amit Pathak told reporters.
Foreign ministry officials visited the couple in hospital and said they were recovering and happy with their treatment.
Agra, which draws millions of visitors from across the world, has been concerned about a hit in its traffic following the politics over the Taj and also a spike in crime.
Former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, referring to the anti-Romeo squads or police teams set up by the Yogi Adityanath government to check harassment, questioned, “What happened to anti-Romeo squads? A couple visiting Fatehpur Sikri were beaten when they tried to click a selfie.”
Congress leader Milind Deora tweeted: “Such a shameful story on the breakdown of law & order in India’s largest state. Is @myogiadityanath listening?”
