The brother of the 24-year-old MBA student from Tripura murdered in Dehradun has detailed how they were called “chinki” by the men who assaulted them.
Anjel Chakma, 24, a resident of Nandannagar in West Tripura district, succumbed to his injuries on 26 December after spending 17 days in a Dehradun hospital. Police said he suffered serious injuries to his head and back caused by sharp objects and a kadaa (metal bracelet).
In a video that surfaced on Monday, apparently recorded inside a car after the incident when Anjel was still alive and undergoing treatment in the ICU, showed his younger brother, Michael, recounting the sequence of events leading up to the assault.
“It was me, my brother and two of our friends. We had gone to collect our stuff. When we reached there, we saw a group of people. They were drunk,” Michael said in the video.
“As we were returning on our bikes, they started abusing me, calling me chinki and making fun of me,” he added.
The Telegraph Online could not immediately verify the authenticity of the video but it does not appear to be AI-generated.
The younger brother said the group began abusing him and then attacked when he asked them why they were abusing him. “I don’t know whether they had pre-planned the whole thing. They attacked me directly. My brother came to save me,” Michael said in the video.
Describing the assault, he added: “They hit me with a kadaa [metal bracelet] and then stabbed my brother near the spine with a knife. He was taken to the ICU.”
In the video, he also shows injuries on his head. The clip was recorded while the family was on its way to the police station to file a complaint, with Anjel Chakma’s father also present in the car.
The incident occurred on December 9 in the Selakui area.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said, "What happened to Anjel Chakma and his brother Michael in Dehradun is a horrific hate crime. Hate doesn’t appear overnight. For years now it is being fed daily - especially to our youth - through toxic content and irresponsible narratives. And it’s being normalised by the hate-spewing leadership of the ruling BJP."
"India is built on respect and unity, not fear and abuse. We are a country of love and diversity. We must not become a dead society that looks away while fellow Indians are targeted. We must reflect and confront what we are allowing our country to become," he added.
"A young man from Tripura, a proud Indian, was racially abused, dehumanized with slurs like “Chinese” and “momo,” and ultimately murdered. This was not an isolated act of violence; it was the culmination of ignorance, prejudice, and a failure of our society to recognize and respect its own diversity," Congress leader Shashi Tharoor wrote on X on Monday.
"Racism is rising in North India, often cloaked in casual mockery or systemic neglect. The Northeast, with its rich tapestry of cultures, languages, and traditions, is not a distant appendage to the Indian identity; it is central to it. Yet, people from the region are routinely subjected to racial profiling, exclusion, and abuse. This must end," Tharoor said.
Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami spoke to Tarun Prasad Chakma, Anjel’s father.
During the phone conversation, he said, "This was a regrettable incident. Everyone is very saddened by this. We will take strict action in this matter.
"What could be more painful for a parent than this? We will ensure that the culprits receive the harshest possible punishment. I also spoke to Tripura CM Manik Saha. The home minister, the defence minister, everyone has spoken about this. Such incidents do not happen here. This kind of atmosphere does not exist here. We are with you in this hour of need. We will provide you with whatever help we can from here," Dhami said.
Tarun Chakma, a BSF jawan currently posted in Tangjeng in Manipur, had earlier said: “Anjel told them that he was also Indian, not Chinese, but they attacked him with knives and blunt objects.”
The father had alleged that police initially refused to register a complaint. According to him, an FIR was filed only two to three days later after intervention by the All India Chakma Students Union and senior officers.
Five accused, including two juveniles, have been apprehended. The main accused is absconding.
Uttarakhand police have announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for information leading to the arrest of the absconding accused, who is believed to be a resident of Nepal. A police team has been sent to the neighbouring country, officials said.
Tripura-based party Tipra Motha’s supremo Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma on Monday announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for information leading to the arrest of the main accused.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma urged Uttarakhand chief minister Dhami to ensure action against those responsible.