‘You’ve done so much for us’: After 1st job, Tripura's Anjel Chakma urged father to take VRS from BSF, say kin

DEHRADUN: As outrage continued to mount over the death of 24-year-old Tripura student Anjel Chakma in an alleged racist attack by six individuals in Dehradun, his family while mourning the irreparable loss, remembers him as a calm and friendly boy who after securing his first job in a campus placement about a month ago told his father, a BSF head constable, to opt for the voluntary retirement scheme and take rest as "he had done so much for us."Earlier on Sunday, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami said his govt is “taking up the case very seriously.” “Any such incident is not at all acceptable in Uttarakhand. Those involved in such crimes won’t be spared. Police have already arrested five of the six accused, including two juveniles. The remaining one, who is absconding, will be nabbed soon,” said Dhami. Tripura CM Manik Saha spoke to him on Saturday, seeking strict action against the accused involved. Amid growing outrage, senior leaders of the northeastern states, including Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma and former Manipur CM N Biren Singh, also condemned the incident and demanded stern action against the perpetrators.Meanwhile, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCLT) on Saturday served notices to Uttarakhand DGP, Dehradun DM and Dehradun SP, seeking a report on the action taken in the horrific case.His maternal uncle, Momen Chakma, who saw him grow since childhood, told TOI on Sunday that “having lived in different states due to his father’s duty, he was very well aware of the challenges and always wanted to support the family. He never indulged in any violence or brawls with friends, and was fond of visiting places. Now everything lies shattered."Momen added that as Anjel was placed in a French MNC, he had plans to ask for a posting in their Guwahati or Kolkata outlet to get close to his home state. “He even asked his mother to be ready to live with him in either of the two cities. He also said that he would fund his younger brother Michael’s higher studies to free his father of the burden... We request the govt to transfer the case to a court in Delhi for our convenience."Anjel’s brother, Michael, 21, who went to Dehradun on his insistence, has now vowed never to return to Uttarakhand after what happened in front of his eyes. “He was always in awe of the state and asked me to pursue higher studies from Dehradun too. So, I enrolled in a BA course in correspondence learning at a city-based private university. He was fond of hiking in the mountains. We were supposed to go for Chandrashila trek on Dec 22, the day his exams would have ended. But now, his new trekking shoes, which arrived a day after the incident, on Dec 10, lie unpacked,” said Michael.Trying to hold back tears, he added: “He came to receive me at Dehradun airport when I first landed there, and after a year, I was leaving the same airport with his coffin..."