Shakira, 30, the Ugandan woman who was reportedly stabbed by a Nigerian national during a drunken brawl in Horamavu Agara in eastern Bengaluru on Wednesday, had come to the City last year on a business visa, police said. 

Usually a business visa is valid for 180 days. She herself told the police that she has been staying in Bengaluru for almost a year. Though she appears to be overstaying, police are yet to verify her passport and visa. She claimed she was on a business visit to India and was into garment business. 

A senior police officer told Deccan Herald that Shakira’s friends, who were witness to the attack, were unavailable for questioning. Police suspect they do not have valid documents and are overstaying, too. That’s why, they may be avoiding the police, the officer suggested. 

On the other hand, police said they didn’t have much information about Onsas, the Nigerian national who is accused of attacking Shakira. Police suspect he too is overstaying as his visa has expired. They are also investigating whether Shakira and Onsas knew to each other. She had claimed that he was a stranger. 

Meanwhile, Mohan Suresh, Honorary Consul of Rwanda in Bengaluru, met senior police officers on Sunday. He was briefed about the incident and given a report.

Another senior police officer said, “The incident took a serious turn after the police learnt that a local newspaper in Uganda had reported that local residents had assaulted a Ugandan national in Bengaluru. We have made it clear to Mohan Suresh that no local people were involved the incident. It was a clash among the Africans themselves.”