Garhwal Post Bureau
DEHRADUN, 3 Jan: Social activist and founder of SDC Foundation, Anoop Nautiyal has written an urgent letter to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, expressing deep anguish over the brutal murder of Angel Chakma, a young student from Tripura, in Dehradun. The letter flags growing insecurity among outstation students, both from other Indian states and from overseas and calls for immediate, visible, and empathetic action from the state government.
As per the letter, Chakma’s murder has shaken the collective conscience of Dehradun and Uttarakhand. The incident has raised serious questions about safety, dignity, racial prejudice, and inclusivity in a state that has long been regarded as an educational hub and a safe destination for students from across the country. In his letter, Anoop stated that he stands in complete solidarity with Anjel’s family and with the people of the North East, who are grieving an irreparable loss.
While investigations are underway, the letter points out that across the country and particularly in the North East the incident is widely perceived as a racially-driven crime. It notes that such perceptions cannot be addressed through official statements alone and require sincere, visible, and empathetic leadership from the highest level of the state government.
The letter places three specific demands before the Uttarakhand government. First, it urges the State government to organize an official prayer and condolence meeting for Angel Chakma in Dehradun, led by the government, to collectively express remorse, solidarity, and respect to Angel’s family and to the people of the North East.
Second, it calls upon the Chief Minister to send a small group of handpicked emissaries to Tripura to personally convey condolences to the bereaved family on behalf of the Government and people of Uttarakhand, as a step toward rebuilding trust.
Third, it demands that the Chief Minister convene an urgent meeting of founders and Vice-Chancellors of all private universities in Uttarakhand. The meeting should result in clear, enforceable measures involving the government, police, local administration, universities, its faculty and the student community itself to create robust safety and security networks for all outstation students, including those from other Indian states and from abroad.
