The accused faced ACT Magistrates Court on Christmas Eve. He is charged with assault. Prosecutors told the court the man hit his partner on Saturday after accusing her of infidelity, Canberra Times reported.
The victim called her father in India during the alleged assault but the accused smashed her phone and slapped her, police said.
Documents presented in the court allege the man stood on the woman’s chest and slapped her. The couple’s five-year-old son told police he saw his father push his mother and he had told his “dad to stop.”
"The [violence] has been escalating for some time and the victim is very afraid of the defendant," prosecutors said. The man was scratched and his shirt was ripped when police arrested him, the court was told.
The man’s defence lawyer said the man failed to pick his wife up from home the evening before which led to an argument.
Prosecutors opposed the bail on the grounds that the man could interfere with witnesses which magistrate Lorraine Walker said was unlikely. Though, she noted safety concerns for the victim and her son.
"I'd certainly be concerned if he were residing in the same home," she said.
The man was granted bail with conditions including not coming within 100 metres of the victim and their son. He will face court again on January 16.
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