"People from Northeast are Indians, not Chinese": Gaurav Gogoi on Angel Chakma's killing in Uttarakhand

New Delhi [India], December 29 : Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Monday condemned the brutal killing of Angel Chakma, a student from Tripura, in Dehradun, highlighting the discrimination faced by people from India's Northeast region.
Speaking at a press conference in Delhi, Gogoi recounted the circumstances leading to Angel's death and criticised the delayed response by authorities.
"Angel Chakma could have endured the abusive words and walked away, and perhaps he would still be alive. But that day, his patience ran out, and he confronted those taunting him. Instead of apologising, five people attacked him from behind. He fought for 14 days but ultimately succumbed to his injuries," Gogoi said.
Gogoi added that Angel's family members said the police did not act promptly, and only after students protested was action taken, by which time the main accused had already escaped.
"His family members said that the police did not show the promptness they should have, but when the students protested, action was finally taken, but by then the main accused had already escaped," he said.
Gogoi further raised concerns about whether similar incidents are happening elsewhere, asking, "Now the question arises: is this happening in other places as well, where people from the Northeast are being treated this way?"
"People from the Northeast are Indians, not Chinese. It is unfortunate that a young man from Tripura had to say these words in Dehradun on December 9 while he was returning from the market," he added.
Later, speaking to reporters, Gogoi shared his own experiences of discrimination.
"This happened with me as well. When I went to Agra once, a guard asked me, 'Where do you hail from? Show me your passport.' We, the people from the Northeast, are asked for passports in our own country, by our own people. It takes a lot of courage to proudly carry your country's flag, only to hear such remarks from a fellow citizen. This is symbolic of both our tolerance and patriotism," he said.
MBA student Anjel Chakma was attacked by a group of miscreants with knives and other blunt objects in Dehradun on December 9 and later died while undergoing treatment at a hospital.
Five people have already been arrested in connection with the incident. Among them, two accused are minors and have been sent to a juvenile reform home.
Police are continuously conducting raids to arrest an absconding accused, on whom a reward of Rs 25,000 has been announced. A police team has also been sent to Nepal in search of the absconding accused, according to the Uttarakhand CMO.