Monday Musing
[ M Doley ]
Students from the Northeastern states go to different cities in the country to pursue higher education with oceans of dreams, while some leave in search of better opportunities. Parents spend their hard-earned money educating their children to secure a bright future, and so that their children can stand on their own feet and support their families in the future.
But all their hopes and aspirations go up in smoke at one go when their children fall victims to racial attacks and die tragic deaths, leaving their families devastated. No amount of monetary assistance and words of consolation can compensate for the loss.
The recent incident in Dehradun, involving the death of Anjel Chakma from Tripura, has once again raised serious concerns over the safety of students from the Northeastern states studying in different parts of the country.
According to reports, Anjel lost his life while resisting racial slurs hurled at his brother by a group of people. He would have been alive and among us today had he not resisted the racial abuse. It is heartbreaking to hear that Anjel died at the hands of goons while his father, a BSF jawan, was guarding the nation in Manipur.
The incident should not just be a grim reminder of the gravity of the racism faced by the people from the region in other parts of the country, but should shake the conscience of every sane citizen.
The incident can’t be considered an isolated one. Similar incidents have happened in the past too.
In 2014, Nido Tania from Arunachal Pradesh was beaten to death in Delhi. The Bezbaruah Committee was formed soon after the death of Tania to address the security concerns of people from the region living in different parts of the country. The committee had submitted its findings in the same year, suggesting several remedial measures and recommendations, but nothing visible has been done yet on them.
Is this indifferent attitude towards the people from the Northeast just because their facial appearance looks different? It is ridiculous to mock someone with adjectives like ‘momo’, ‘chinki’ ‘coronavirus’, etc, for having Mongoloid facial features.
The hate crimes stemming from ignorance about the region, its people, cultures, and history are neither acceptable nor helpful in building a harmonious society.
Apart from Anjel and Tania’s cases, countless incidents of racial abuse against people from NE living in other parts of the country occur every other day, many of which go unreported.
The Bezbaruah Committee had stated in its report after examining a research report that in 2009-2010, 86 percent of the Northeast people faced racial discrimination in metro cities in India.
Time is already overdue to take steps to stop these nonsensical activities.
