The owner of Bollywood Flavour suffered slash injuries on his face and arm after an intruder forced his way into his restaurant in the southwestern suburb of Ipswich in Brisbane on January 12th, just after 7 pm.
Guranditta Bajwa’s wife Puneet, who also works at the restaurant, initially mistook the 16-year-old assailant for a customer until he reportedly demanded cash while wielding a knife.
Mr Bajwa immediately jumped in to save his pregnant wife and in turn suffered lacerations to his face, arm and hand.
It is believed that a group of onlookers intervened and held the assailant down until the police arrived. The police charged a 16-year-old Bellbird Park boy with attempted armed robbery.
Mr Bajwa was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. In the meantime, locals have started a fundraiser to support his family.
A similar incident had occurred in Ipswich in 2017 when yet another Indian restaurant was robbed in the southwestern suburb leading to $24,000 worth of damage.
Speaking to SBS Punjabi after the incident back then, the owner of the restaurant Rajesh Sharma had shared his fear and frustration of what he said was years of repeated robberies, staff stabbings and constant racial abuse in the area.
"In Ipswich, we are living in constant fear and frustration," Mr Sharma had said.
Mr Sharma had also said that his restaurant and bottle shop had been robbed more than 20 times in the past seven years.
