The death of a Tripura student in Dehradun, after being severely assaulted, has sparked widespread outrage, with his father on Monday alleging that the police initially refused to file an FIR in the case.
Angel Chakma, an MBA student at a private university, died on Friday after battling for his life for 17 days in the hospital. His father, Tarun Chakma, said his son was brutally attacked with knives and blunt objects when he attempted to defend his brother, who had been racially abused and called "Chinese" by the attackers.
Tarun, a BSF jawan, told PTI that the police only filed the FIR two to three days later, after pressure from the All India Chakma Students Union and senior officers.
The police have arrested five individuals, including two juveniles, while another suspect, a Nepali resident, is believed to have fled to his home country. Authorities announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for information leading to the arrest of the absconding accused and stated they would send a team to Nepal to track him down.
The incident occurred on December 9, when Angel and his brother Machael were brutally assaulted by a group of people in Selaqui, where they had gone for some work. Angel later succumbed to his injuries while undergoing treatment at the hospital. His last rites were performed in Machmara village, Unakoti district, Tripura.
‘Justice will be served’
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha assured the victim's family of justice after speaking with his Uttarakhand counterpart. Saha said the Tripura government would provide all possible support to the family.
"I spoke with Hon'ble Chief Minister of Uttarakhand @pushkardhami Ji regarding the tragic incident involving our student Angel Chakma, a resident of Nandanagar, Debram Thakur Para, who was brutally assaulted by a group of miscreants in Dehradun on 9th December and later passed away at Graphic Era Hospital," Saha wrote on X.
