“We Are Not Chinese”: Tripura Student Dies After Racist Assault in Dehradun

Tripura was engulfed in grief and anger on Saturday as the body of 24-year-old Anjel Chakma, a final-year MBA student from Jigyasa University in Dehradun, was brought back to the state.

Anjel had been critically injured in a violent attack in Dehradun’s Selaqui area on December 9 and fought for his life for over two weeks before succumbing to his injuries on Friday.

The attack occurred while Anjel and his younger brother, Michael Chakma, a student at Uttaranchal University, were out to buy groceries.

Reports say a group of men targeted the brothers with racial slurs, calling them “Chinese” and other derogatory names. When Anjel calmly corrected them, asserting their Indian identity, the men allegedly turned violent.

Anjel was stabbed in the neck and abdomen, while Michael sustained injuries to his head. Michael remains hospitalised in a serious condition.

Police registered a case on December 12 based on Michael’s complaint. The FIR initially included sections for voluntarily causing hurt, voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons, and criminal intimidation. Following Anjel’s death, the police upgraded the FIR, adding charges for murder and committing a crime with common intention.

Five of the six accused, including two juveniles, have been arrested. The main suspect, Yagya Awasthi, is believed to have fled to Nepal, and a reward of ₹25,000 has been announced for his capture.

Anjel’s body was received by family, friends, and student organisations, including the Youth Tipra Federation and the Tribal Indigenous Students’ Federation, at Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala.

Leaders like Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma and Suraj Debbarma condemned the attack and called for justice, highlighting that racial slurs and attacks on North-Eastern students remain a serious problem across India.

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