Racial bullying of people from North East unacceptable: Meghalaya CM after two assaulted in Delhi

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Monday called for stringent action against those who attacked a woman from Manipur and her transgender friend from Assam near the Saket District Court complex in Delhi.

Sangma called the incident sickening and said that “racial bullying should not be accepted as the new normal”.

Former Manipur CM N Biren Singh also condemned the incident on Monday and said that people from the North East must “feel safe, respected, and treated with dignity in every part of our country”.

He said he was “deeply disturbed by the incident of racial harassment and assault” and said such acts of racism and violence were completely unacceptable.

Both Sangma and Singh urged the authorities to take strict action against the perpetrators.

The incident

On Sunday, a woman from Manipur and her transgender friend belonging to Assam were assaulted by a group of men in Delhi after the woman confronted the men over racially derogatory remarks, The Hindu reported.

The injured woman was later taken to Safdarjung Hospital and is in a stable condition, India Today North East reported.

On Monday, the Delhi Police said one minor has been apprehended in connection with the assault, and that continuous efforts were underway to nab the remaining accused persons.

This was the second reported incident in Delhi in recent days of citizens from the North East being targeted.

On February 20, three women from Arunachal Pradesh also faced racial abuse in Delhi.

The Delhi Police had said that a couple was booked for allegedly shouting racial slurs and intimidating three women who lived in the same building as them.

The altercation erupted when debris allegedly fell into the home of the accused persons when the women were getting an air conditioner installed. The women claimed that they were told they worked at “massage parlours” and that they should sell momos.