"I'm Indian": Tripura Student Dies After Racial Attack in Dehradun, Arrests Made

New Delhi: A routine trip to buy groceries turned deadly for a young student in Dehradun. On the evening of December 9, 24-year-old Anjel Chakma, an MBA final-year student from Tripura, was out with his younger brother Michael Chakma in the Selaqui area when a group of local youths approached them and began hurling offensive racial slurs. 

Michael said terms like "Chinese", "Chinki" and "momos" were shouted at them. When he objected, the situation quickly escalated. 

What happened during the confrontation?

According to police and the complaint filed by Michael, the group of six men first physically attacked the brothers, when they stepped out to buy groceries near a liquor shop on the night of the attack.

Michael told the police the attackers were allegedly in an inebriated condition and used racial slurs. Michael was struck on the head with a metal kadaa (bracelet), and then Anjel intervened to protect him. 

Minutes before stabbing, Anjel said: "We are not Chinese... We are Indians. What certificate should we show to prove that?"

During the attack, Anjel was stabbed multiple times. He suffered serious injuries to his head, neck and back, and collapsed at the scene. Michael, also injured, managed to get help. 

Doctors at hospital fought to save him, but Anjel succumbed to his injuries after more than two weeks of treatment, passing away in hospital on December 26.

Who has been held responsible?

Uttarakhand police have arrested five suspects in connection with the attack. Two of them are juveniles and have been sent to a correction home. The other accused, identified as Avinash Negi, Suraj Khawas, and Sumit, are in judicial custody. 

One main accused is reported to have fled the area and is believed to be in Nepal. Police have announced a reward for information leading to his arrest and dispatched teams to track him down. 

Senior sub-inspector Jitendra Kumar of Selaqui police station said on Sunday, "Yagya Awasthi, the main accused, is suspected to have fled to Nepal... Two police teams have been dispatched to track him down and nab him, and a reward of Rs 25,000 has been announced. After Anjel's death, we added additional BNS sections - 103(1) (murder) and 3(5) (committing crime with common intention)."

Police have upgraded the charges against the arrested men to include murder and other serious offences under the Indian Penal Code.

Why has the case sparked anger?

The killing has triggered strong reactions in Tripura and beyond. Many people, including community leaders, have condemned the use of racial slurs and the violence that followed. Some have pointed to wider concerns about discrimination faced by students from the Northeast when they move to other parts of the country for education and work. 

The student's body was flown back to Tripura, where family, friends and local leaders paid tribute. Family members, along with leaders of the Youth Tipra Federation (YTF) and the Tribal Indigenous Students' Federation (TISF), received the body at Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport. 

On Saturday, BJP Tripura state General Secretary Bipin Debbarma called the Angel's death as "deeply saddening for all the people of Tripura"

"This is deeply saddening for all the people of Tripura. The CM of Tripura has held talks with the CM of Uttarakhand, and those who are involved in this incident will be brought to justice," Debbarma was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.