Tripura CM spoke to Uttarakhand CM over student’s death, seeking justice
Agartala: Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Saturday spoke to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to discuss the circumstances surrounding the death of MBA student Angel Chakma, who succumbed to injuries after being brutally assaulted in Dehradun earlier this month.
The conversation took place hours after the mortal remains of Chakma, a resident of Nandanagar under Debram Thakur Para in Tripura, were brought back to the state.
The 24-year-old student was allegedly stabbed by a group of intoxicated miscreants following a scuffle on December 9, during which his brother Micheal Chakma was also injured.
Angel was initially admitted to a hospital in Dehradun and later shifted to a Bengaluru-based hospital in critical condition, where he died on December 26.
Eyewitnesses have alleged that the assault took place after the brothers protested against racial slurs directed at them.
In a post shared on social media, Saha said he had discussed the matter with the Uttarakhand Chief Minister and sought details of the investigation.
According to the post, Dhami informed him that five persons have so far been arrested in connection with the case and assured that further investigation is underway and justice would be ensured.
Leaders of the Youth Tipra Federation (YTF) and the Tipra Indigenous Students’ Federation, frontal organisations of the Tipra Motha Party, received the mortal remains at MBB Airport here and later attended the funeral at the student’s residence.
They expressed condolences to the bereaved family and demanded strict punishment for those involved.
Addressing reporters, YTF leader Sajra Debbarma said students and working professionals from the region routinely face racial abuse and discrimination in different parts of the country. He alleged that derogatory slurs such as “Momo”, “Chinese” and “Chinki” are frequently used against people from the region.
Debbarma asserted that such remarks undermine the dignity and identity of the people of the region and questioned why their nationality is repeatedly doubted based solely on physical appearance.
He said the sense of alienation among students living outside the region has been growing due to repeated incidents of harassment.
He urged the Government of India to take urgent and decisive steps to ensure the safety of students from the region, stating that assurances alone were insufficient.
He called for effective and enforceable policies to prevent such incidents and to provide real protection to those studying or working outside the region.
