New Delhi: An Indian man lied about being racially attacked, claims Australian police.
The police say Jaspreet Singh confessed to burning his car to claim insurance after alleging that he was racially attacked.
Police say he made up the story after accidentally setting himself on fire, while torching his car in an insurance fraud scheme.
Singh had complained he was attacked by four men, who also set his car on fire while he was parking it.
But hospital reports said that damages to his clothes and car were not consistent with his story.
Police say Singh gained 11 thousand Australian dollars in insurance money after the incident.
Accodring to Sky News TV police claim that Singh purchased an opaque plastic container and filled it with nearly 16 litres of petrol a day before he torched his seven-year old car to claim insurance money.
The container and other evidence were found at his home when he was arrested on Tuesday, they said before the bail justice.
Singh is in Australia on his wife's student visa. He reportedly told the police that he was doused with petrol by some racists and set alight as he parked his car near his home.
Singh was taken to the Alfred hospital with burns to his face, arms and hands.
But President of Federation of Indian Students in Australia Gautam Gupta says Singh should get a fair legal trial.
"Police have just charged him. Jaspreet Singh is innocent till proven guilty. His family is denying the charges and we should give equal weightage to the case as well. We have to see how the case plays out. Is Jaspreet going to get a fair go in the legal system? Is the Indian government going to provide him a proper legal representation?" asks Gupta.
But Singh's family claims innocence.
The Associate Press reports say that 29-year-old Singh is now being charged with making a false report for financial gains.
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