Pakinrichapbo
Peren
The physical assault of revered Manipur Musician Chongtham Vikram Singh by a group of eight men including a juvenile aged 15 years old comprised of mainland Indians on 6th of September from outside and from the corridor of his resident at Kilokari Southeast Delhi, which led to his untimely death on the following day is a proof, that the Government of the day has not fully opened their eyes to do something not only for the safety of the Northeast Indians living in Indian cities mainly Delhi but also on educating the mainland Indians on their perception towards people from Northeast India. We all know we look different from regular Indians and this difference has always made us an easy target when living in major cities but New Delhi stand out from all other cities when it comes to attack on people from Northeast. Adding more fuel to the fire, the Delhi Police have stated in their press release, that the crime may not be racially motivated, but here I want to questioned the Delhi Police, can those arrested men mainly workers of a nearby Dhaba dare to warn and physically assault any other local residents right in front of his house and even go inside his house to attack him, the victim in this case happened to be a migrant from other state which I am sure the mobs will be aware and he happened to look, speak and eat different from them. The victim had also informed his son that those workers had also warned him before. It is not a case of unknown passers-by crossing each other in a street and happened to fight for whatever reasons.
The killing of the musician cum music teacher has sparked public outcry back in North-eastern states and attracted wide condemnation from Northeast community living in Delhi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has tweeted his condemnation on the lynching, Union Minister of Parliamentary affairs Kiren Rijiju has called it tragic. But such incidents of lynching racially distinct individuals require more than condemnations but a presence of strong anti-racism law or whatever the Government find it appropriate, as I feel the Indian Government would not want to admit India is a racist country passing/enacting such law in the first place. However in order to minimise such hate crimes, I opine that alongwith the presence of strong anti-racism law, compulsory mass educational program on educating people on Northeast Indians and its connection to India have to be implemented by the central government in consultation with all the states, such program may not be an all-out answer to reduce such racial attack but will surely and slowly bring more protection, integration and understanding of each other between mainland Indians and people from North-eastern region. It is also suggesteda re-education program for repeat offenders, the duration of such education program shall dependupon the severity of his crime.
Does Northeast Indians need strong anti-racism law?
Following the brutal killing of Nido Tania in New Delhi on January 2014 and on account of huge protest/demonstrations from students’ communities, civil societies and with direct involvement and political pressure from then Northeast Members of Parliament and regional leaders, the Government had set up MP Bezbaruah Committee to examine the scale of regional and racial discrimination faced by people from Northeast India. The said committee had reasonably recommended legislation of standalone anti racism law with setting up of fast track court for speedy trials and amending section 153C and 509(A)of the IPC which was not considered in the new BNS, 2023. Unfortunately the successive government had failed to passed specific racial hate-crime legislation instead relies on general penal code provisions. Such wilful delay or reluctance on the part of the government to legislate anti racism law for the safety and preservation of Northeast people to allow them live with human dignity need to be demanded democratically on the streets now. Unwillingness on the part of the Government of the day to legislate anti-racism law may be an denial on the part of the government to admit such attack are racially motivated but such attacks continues, name calling of people from Northeast continues, recently a four year girl child Karga Tinkle Gongo from Itanagar Arunachal Pradesh went viral in August after posting a video stating, humko Indian Bolo (call us Indian) after social media user questioned her nationality and why Chinese child was speaking Hindi, such incident cannot be ignored as a case of mere ignorance on the part of fellow common Indians. There is no shame in admitting India is a racist country, better to cure the disease, than to hide it from availing treatment, when it is so in reality. The United States government since its inception as a sovereign state had to deal with evils of slavery and its difficulties in its abolition, later with civil rights movement from the black American community which passes several civils rights protection laws providing basic human rights, civil and political rights and protection from hate crimes to African American, the latest being the Mathew Shepherd and James Byrd Jr, Hate Crime Prevention Act 2009, which created federal penalties for violent crime committed against people because of their race, color, religion, gender or national origin. In our case Northeast Indian citizens as a full Indian Citizens are given full rights but its common citizens are still not safe from fellow Indian’s citizens, if attack happened rarely, we can say it is not racially motivated or such attacks do not fall under hate crimes category but that’s not the case. We hear now and then of people from Northeast living in Major cities being attacked for trivial reasons or called names on regular basis.
To check hate crimes in Delhi, Government had established Special Police Unit for Northeast region to attend to the grievance and call of the Northeast people in Delhi but that has not reduced hate crimes or awareness on the mind of the fellow Indian citizens. Therefore, the need of the hour is strong anti-racism law or prevention of hate crimes against people from northeast and to set up Know Northeast Educational Program which has to be started immediately to educate Indians from all backgrounds on North-eastern region as few information on northeast region on school syllabus is not going to change anything. The anti-racist law needs stringent punishment for the convicted offenders where convicted criminal must be made to serve half period of his sentence in a particular state where the victim belonged as a part of re-educating the convicts on India cultural and ethnic diversity.
My place, my wish
The concept of my place, my wish, is one of the main contributors to attacks on migrants by locals in any particular state or city, the migrants may be from other states or other districts from the same state. Just because people from Northeast region are attacked in major cities does not mean, we are not aware of the situation in other Indian States. Almost on the same week of the incident, I came to learn through NDTV news channel, that one 64 years old migrant worker was also brutally murdered in Chennai. India’s diversity in geography and language had always created animosity for migrants from the locals of a particular state for example the South Indians, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar immigrants were forced to leave Maharashtra once upon a time. Son of the soil theory prevails everywhere. In the instant case, the arrested individuals may or may not be from Delhi itself. The geography of New Delhi is that migrants from UP or Bihar or other North Indians states will always have upper hand when it comes having influences or power in New Delhi. Likewise, populace of North-eastern states must also introspect on how they treat migrants from other states who have come to earn their livings in Northeast region.
Last though
Though our Constitution aim to deliver social, political and economic justice to all its citizens, the common Indians especially Northeast Indians have to struggle till today for want of social justice and acceptance. Which reminds me to quote Dr BR Ambedkar famous quote in his last speech in the Constituent Assembly on November 25th 1949, that if the constitution fails, it will be because of the functionaries and people working it have failed, not because the document itself is bad.
