Assam Advocate Demands New Law to Protect Northeast Indians from Racism

Guwahati, March 28, 2020:

Bhaskar Dev Konwar, a senior advocate from the Gauhati High Court in Assam has brought attention to the acts of racism against Northeast Indian students in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. The advocate, seething at the numerous incidents of racism against fellow NE Indians, has uploaded a video on his Facebook page in which he demands stringent laws against racism towards people from the Northeast.

To bring attention to a very serious issue, the advocate has released a video in which he can be seen swinging punches while garbed in boxing gear, visibly in frustration and anger. This anger, he revels, is because of the unfair treatment of Northeast Indians in other parts because of their mongoloid features.

"I am greatly angered, and I have a reason. Taking advantage of the COVID-19, sections of people from other states, are teasing the Northeast Indian students are working professionals who are stuck there. If they go to malls, they are called corona or Chinese. At times, we are called momo or chowmein. The girls are called Chinky", says the Assam advocate, visibly indignant at the plight of the Northeast Indians.

Konwar also said that in India, people cannot abuse someone because of their caste as it is a grievous offense. "These are non-bailable offenses and there is no anticipatory bail. Strict punishment is given, compensation is given."

Adding that the Northeast Indians need a separate law to ensure that they do not feel a sense of "alienation" because of these vile acts of racism, the Assam advocate said there is need to safeguard them further. "If they spit at someone from Manipur, they will have to be given strict punishment", the advocate added, referring to a recent case when a girl in Manipur was abused in North Delhi's Vijay Nagar.

The Assam advocate further called forth politicians from all sides of the political aisle to formulate a new law that will mark these racist acts against Northeast Indians as non-bailable offenses.

Lashing out at the people responsible for these acts of crass racism against the Northeasterners dwelling in mainland India, Konwar said, "If Northeast can give you Mary Kom, if Northeast can give you one top-notch boxer after another, be ready to fight with us."

Now, Konwar's video has already gone viral on social media platforms and has been viewed hundreds of times already. Although the Assam adcocate has become the latest to voice out against these racist acts, he is not the first to do so.

After the recent incident in Delhi during which a 25-year-old Manipur scholar was spat on and called 'corona' by a North Indian man called Karan Vohra, Shaikhom Chingkhei, the President of the Manipur Students’ Association in Delhi told Inside Northeast: "You know, this kind of racism has always existed, even before it made national headlines. I, myself, have been subjected to it. En route to the market yesterday, I was called corona by a small child. That speaks volumes."

Several acts of racism against Northeast Indians have been recorded in the wake of the outbreak of the COVID-19.

On 20 March 2020, 24-year-old Cathy Chakhesang and her eight colleagues from Nagaland working at a dental insurance company’s call centre had to spend the night in a government quarantine facility meant for suspected patients of the coronavirus disease allegedly because of their Mongoloid looks. They had no physical symptoms of the disease, no foreign travel history, no apparent contact with any laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 patient and none of them ticked any of the boxes that qualify people to be treated as a suspect case.

On 16 March 2020, 74 year old Rinzin Dorjee and his daughter Tsering Yangzom from Northeast India were denied entry in Shree Sainath Housing Society at Mulund (East), Mumbai on the suspicion that they hail from China. Mr Dorjee has been a frequent visitor to Mumbai for his cancer treatment and has been staying at the Housing Society for the last three months. However, on 16 March the security guard did not allow him and his daughter to enter the society alleging that they might be infected with the virus.

These are just a few examples of racial discrimination that the people of the Northeast have had to face. We have received reports from Northeast students staying in Delhi that they dread going outside their hostels or rented houses because they are being mercilessly teased as 'corona'.

Dev Konwar, opining on these incidents, tells Inside Northeast: "These kind of prejudices and racial discrimination should be condemned. India needs a strict law where racial discrimination is made non-bailable; only then the people of NE will not feel alienated from mainstream India. At present the offence of uttering offensive word is a bailable offence under IPC. Mainstream people fail to appreciate that we share the same boundaries of India.Our constitution is the same and we salute the same flag."

Support Inside Northeast (InsideNE), an independent media platform that focuses on Citizen-centric stories from Northeast India that are surprising, inspiring, cinematic and emotionally relevant.