The aftermath of Anjel Chakma’s death is still continuing. The updated status of the case is five out of six accused including two juveniles have been arrested. But the prime accused Yagya Awasthi is still at large. He is believed to have fled to Nepal. A cash bounty of ₹25,000 has been announced for his capture. The police stance on the case is also questionable. Dehradun police initially denied the killing as racially motivated. They termed the incident as a liquor shop brawl, which was severely criticized by the civil society as dismissive.
A brief back story of the incident: On the fateful day of 9th December, 2025 Anjel and his brother were accosted by a gang of ruffians in the Selaqui area of Dehradun. They hurled racially abusive words at the brothers. Anjel protested it and said that “We are not Chinese… we are Indians. What certificate should we show to prove that?” The infuriated gang grievously assaulted the brothers leading to death of Angel Chakma after battling for life for 17 days.
The ghastly killing sparked an intense protest in different places of the country. The protesting groups and organizations have demanded dedicated anti racial legislation criminalizing racial slurs and hate crimes particularly towards the people of Northeast. Alleging dismissive attitude of local police, the protesters demand CBI investigation in the case. Another important aspect of the protest is the filing of a PIL in the Supreme Court demanding classification of racial slur as a distinct category of crime.
