Vigil held in Sydney for slain Brisbane bus driver

Sydney’s Indian community came together last night to remember Manmeet Sharma, the bus driver killed last week in an attack on a Brisbane bus.

Community members gathered at Parramatta’s Robin Thomas Reserve on Hassall Street to remember Mr Sharma.

The 29-year-old bus driver was killed when an “incendiary device” was allegedly thrown at him when he stopped to pick up passengers at Moorooka last Friday.

Moorooka man Anthony O‘Donohue, 48, was charged with his murder, as well as arson, and the attempted murder of the 11 passengers who were on board the bus at the time of the incident. 

A Punjabi community leader who attended the vigil, which was supported by the Parramatta City Council, told SBS the bus driver’s death has taken a toll on the community.

“There was a lot of connection with this incident. He was a migrant, he was young, he had the same dream as every one of us,” Rajwant Singh said.

Mr Sharma, who also referred to himself as Manmeet Alisher, was a prominent figure and singer in the Punjabi community in Australia.