Indians in Qatar concerned over communal incitement

The Indian community in Qatar has expressed shock and concern over a video showing an Indian man being assaulted by fellow countrymen going viral on social media.

The three-minute video shows the group attacking the young man, suspected of having posted comments on Facebook that offended Muslims, outside a shopping mall perhaps on May 8, Peninsula Qatar reported on Monday.

Qatar's interior ministry on Sunday convened a meeting of all Indian community organisations affiliated to the Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) and urged them to respect the country's laws and maintain communal harmony.

ICC president Girish Kumar and two senior officials of the Indian embassy attended the meeting along with some 80-90 representatives of community organisations, the report said.

"As per Qatari law, insulting any religion by any means, including Hinduism, is an act of crime in Qatar," a prominent lawyer Yusuf Al Zaman was quoted as saying.

Various Indian community organisations condemned the incident and called for creating an awareness against unwanted reactions to communal incitements.