A Chinese citizen in Islamabad appealed to the government for support on Tuesday after he was allegedly assaulted on Sunday when a business deal with a Pakistani man turned sour.

Liu Xiao Long sent an application to the Interior Ministry claiming he entered into a partnership with a Ishtiaq Ali to start a hotel business in Islamabad's Sector F-7, the Chinese citizen's translator, Raja Sabeel, told Dawn.com.

However, when the business did not yield adequate returns, Long was unable to pay Ali his share of the revenue, Sabeel claimed. Following the incident, Ali had Long beaten up and removed from the hotel premises, he alleged.

"Long and Ishtiaq Ali started a hospitality business together, Long payed Ali Rs1 million up-front as a security deposit," Sabeel claimed. The business was split 50-50 between the two partners, and the premises belongs to Ali, he added.

"However, the business did not pick up in the first few months and Ali kept asking Long to pay his cut."

"Even after Long had shown Ali the record books, Ali kept insisting he be paid his share, and on Sunday, he brought 8-10 unidentified men to the hotel to beat Long and his staff up," Sabeel alleged.

"The men took away all valuables from the premises as well as cash," he claimed, adding that the men also assaulted a Chinese businessman, Liu-Weixing, who was staying at the hotel.

Long has submitted an application to the Interior Ministry and registered a First Information Report (FIR) regarding the incident, Sabeel claimed.

Officials at the Kohsar police station confirmed having received a copy of the FIR, in which Long claims that Ali, "cheated me out of Rs1 million and threw me out [...] not even paying me back the Rs1 million I gave him as a security deposit."

Long, in his application, requested the government to "help me out, after arresting aforesaid person [Ishtiaq Ali], possession of the hotel may be restored to me so I be able to earn bread and butter."