'Go home, Indian': Sikh restaurateur racially targeted in Australia - report

The Sikh man runs a restaurant in Hobart, Tasmania. (Representational image)

A Sikh restaurateur living in Australia has alleged that he has been racially targeted several times in recent months, telling him to "go home" and smearing his car with dog excrement. Jarnail Singh, who runs a restaurant in Hobart, Tasmania, said he has been continuously targeted for over the last two, or three months, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

"Never, ever has this happened to me before, and it's been continuous (over) the last two, three months," Singh was quoted as saying. "It's mentally very stressful when it comes to your house, and particularly (being targeted) with your name on it… It's too much mental stress. Something has to be done," Singh told ABC News on Tuesday.

The first incident involved dog excrement being smeared on the door handles of his car, for four or five days in a row, outside his home. Then, he found racist graffiti in his driveway, telling him "Go home, Indian".

The Sikh man reported the matter to the police, but, without video evidence, little could be done to track down who was behind it. Filled with racist comments, Singh first assumed the letter had been written by a young person, and did his best to ignore it, after reporting it to police.

The next letter received about a month later, was even more offensive than the first including comments like "you can **** off back to India" and threats of damage to his car, at either Singh's work or his home. Singh has lived in Australia for around 15 years, with 10 of those being in Tasmania.

In a statement, Tasmania Police Commander Jason Elmer said the incidents had been reported to police and were being investigated. He said current legislation allowed for courts to "consider that a motivation of racial hatred or prejudice can be an aggravating factor in sentencing".

Commander Elmer said there was "no excuse for any form of verbal or physical harassment" in the community, and that people were encouraged to contact police immediately if they believe they have been the victim of a prejudice-related incident.