Assault sparked by smile in canteen lands 35-year-old man in jail for 3 months

SINGAPORE - A seemingly minor dispute that began with a smile in a staff canteen ended with a foreign worker suffering facial injuries when the other man assaulted him with a weapon.

Ganesan Thennarasu, 35, was jailed for three months on Friday (April 13) after pleading guilty to hurting Mr Baskar Praveen, 26. Both men are Indian nationals.

The row began when Mr Baskar saw Ganesan smiling at him in a canteen at the Tuas View Dormitory in Tuas South Avenue 1 at around 5.45pm on Sept 1 last year.

He was annoyed by the smile and confronted Ganesan and a scuffle broke out.

The two men then went to a nearby security post and an officer gave them a warning and told them to leave the premises.

Mr Baskar then walked away with a friend, Mr Chithamparam Siranjeevi, who spotted Ganesan following them.

When Mr Baskar turned around, Ganesan took the weapon from his pocket and flicked it across the younger man's face several times.

Court papers did not name the object used as a weapon.

Mr Chithamparam noticed that Mr Baskar's face was bleeding and took him back to the security post. The duty officer detained Ganesan and called the police.

Mr Baskar was treated at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital for cuts below his left eyelid, face and lips.

He was given four days of outpatient sick leave.

Offenders convicted of causing hurt with a weapon can be jailed for up to seven years and fined or caned.

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