A couple from Nagaland and their friend were allegedly assaulted by four men near Hesaraghatta on the outskirts of the city, according to a senior police officer.
All four men who attacked the couple and their friend on October 25 have been arrested, Deputy Superintendent of Police Konappa Reddy told PTI. He said the three had left for Nrityagram as the man wanted to teach his wife driving. They spent about 45 minutes there and were about to leave the place that evening when they noticed a puncture.
As they were fixing it in the rain, a car drew up and the four occupants asked them in Kannada what they were doing there. They could not reply as they did not know the language.
The four suddenly pushed the man about, punched him in the chest, snatched the umbrella from his wife and assaulted her when she tried to intervene. The friend tried to help but to no avail.
The four men realised the situation was getting out of hand, got into their vehicle and sped away, Reddy said. After replacing the tyre, the victims approached the police station at Soldevanhalli to lodge a complaint, but were referred to the one at Doddaballapur, Reddy said.
Earlier on October 14, three students from Manipur were allegedly beaten up by locals for not speaking in Kannada. Bangalore is home to a large number of people from the northeast.