London:
A 17-year-old British teenager has been arrested by the UK police in connection with the killing of 23-year-old Indian student Anuj Bidve. Anuj was shot dead early last morning in what the police have described as an unprovoked attack.
The unnamed teenager was arrested in the early hours today.
Bidve was shot in the head while walking from his hotel in the Salford area towards the Manchester city centre at about 1.30 am He died at a hospital a short while later.
Bidve was a postgraduate student of Microelectronics at Lancaster University. He was visiting friends in Manchester along with eight others, also reported to be Indian students at the university, during the Christmas break.
His father, Subhash Bidve, appealed through Facebook for help to bring his body back to Pune. He wrote: "Pl help in getting Anuj Bidve's dead body back to India...We appeal to all his friends in UK and India to help spread the word. Pl help us get Anuj back".
His brother-in-law, Rakesh Sonawane, said that the family was going through a trauma and could not wait to see Anuj. "We want to appeal to the UK government to send Anuj's body back to India as soon as possible. We also appeal to the Government of India to help us out in getting Anuj back," Mr Sonawane said in a statement.
Witnesses have reportedly said that the attack was not a case of robbery and that it was not racially motivated.
The gunman was recognised as a white man in his mid-20s, of slim build and wearing a grey top. The other man had a heavier build and wore a black jacket.
IANS quoted a report in the The Sun which said that the two men walked up to Bidve and his friends outside an eatery. After a short exchange of words, one of them pulled out a pistol and shot the Indian student in the side of the head at point-blank range. The two fled, leaving Bidve dying in the street in a pool of blood, the report said.
The eight other Indian students who were with Bidve when he was shot have given their initial statements to the police. These students, who were said to be deeply upset, are being looked after in a "safe place" by the police. A Lancaster University spokeswoman told Sky News that counselling and support was being organised for Bidve's friends.
Without ruling out racism as a motive, Chief Superintendent Kevin Mulligan said: "This appears to be an unprovoked attack and we can't establish a motive at this time. We are investigating every possible aspect and we are in the early stages of the investigation."
He sought the help of the local community to track down the killer. "I believe the answers to who did this will lie in our community. Someone will know who was responsible and I want to implore those people to be courageous," Mr Mulligan said.
He said the young man "was simply visiting Manchester with his friends and has been killed, and his family deserve to see those responsible brought to justice".
Among messages that kept flowing on Facebook, one said: "Can't believe that someone so full of life had his life ruthlessly taken away from him for no mistake of his own ... rest in peace."
(With agency inputs)