Vishal Jood, a 24-year-old Indian from Haryana, received a grand welcome in India after he was deported from Australia for his alleged involvement in attacks on Sikhs in Sydney, The Times of India reported. He served six months in prison in Australia before returning home.

Jood was arrested in April and pleaded guilty to charges that included “assault, occasioning actual bodily harm in the company of others, and armed with the intention to commit indictable offence”, the report added. He claimed he was “upholding the honour of the Indian Tricolour”.

Australia-based Indian Link News reported that eight charges against Jood, including that of racial hate crime, were dropped in a plea bargain.

“Attempts to undermine Australia’s social cohesion will not be tolerated,” Alex Hawke, Australia’s Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs said on Twitter.

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Australia: Indian-origin man arrested for alleged attacks on Sikhs