BASINGSTOKE MP Maria Miller is meeting with police this week to discuss concerns over the Asian community being targeted for gold, following an attack on a mother in her own home.

As previously reported in the Gazette, Mamta Mathur was at home in Cromwell Road, South View, with her husband and three children when two men entered and hit her over the head with a crowbar, leaving her bleeding and unconscious.

The 44-year-old businesswoman, who spent two days in hospital receiving 22 stitches in her head following the attack at 8.30pm on August 28, believes her family was targeted because they are Asian, with the intruders mistakenly thinking they had gold.

The family has criticised the police for not doing enough about the problem, with Mamta saying: “They are content that if we have gold, it’s our problem.

“They are segmenting us by saying you are Asian, you have gold so you will be targeted. That’s not fair, we are making such huge contributions to the economy. We made a point not to have any gold in our home because we want to send a message out, and if we got burgled nothing valuable would be taken.”

Mrs Miller described the incident as “harrowing” and said she had written to Mamta after reading about what happened in the Gazette.

She added: “This was an appalling attack on Mamta and her family in their home. I have been in contact with the police in charge of the investigation, which is ongoing. Having read the harrowing and traumatic account of the attack in the Gazette, I also wrote to Mamta who showed such courage in the face of her attackers.

“Every resident needs to be confident that this sort of very serious crime is fully investigated, and the perpetrators brought to justice. I am meeting the Basingstoke police district commander this week to discuss the incident further, to understand the support the family are receiving and what else can be done to address the concerns there are about Asian gold burglaries.”