Agartala, Jan 14 (IANS) Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha said on Wednesday that he would again raise the issue of the killing of Tripura student Angel Chakma with his Uttarakhand counterpart Pushkar Singh Dhami during a meeting in New Delhi to expedite the investigation in the murder.

Angel Chakma was killed in Dehradun in an alleged racially-motivated attack.

On Wednesday, the Chief Minister visited Angel’s family at their residence in Nandan Nagar, on the outskirts of Agartala, and assured them of all possible support.

Later, in a post on his X handle, Saha said: “Visited the house of late Angel Chakma at Nandannagar, Agartala, and met his grieving parents and family members. I expressed my heartfelt condolences and assured them of all possible support from the State Government. I will also take up the matter with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Shri Pushkar Singh Dhami Ji, to ensure the investigation is expedited..”

Speaking to the media later, Saha said that he would visit the national Capital on January 18 to attend a two-day meeting from January 19–20 of all Chief Ministers, during which he would discuss the Angel Chakma killing with his Uttarakhand counterpart.

“Chief Minister Dhami had earlier informed me that five of the accused have been arrested and a financial reward has been announced to nab the sixth accused. Since the incident, I have been in constant touch with the Uttarakhand government,” Saha said.

According to the Chief Minister, the attackers first assaulted Angel’s younger brother, Michael Chakma, and when Angel tried to protect his brother, he was violently attacked by the assailants on December 9 in the BJP-ruled state.

The Tripura government has already provided an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh to Angel’s family and is considering extending further help.

The Uttarakhand government has also provided an ex gratia of Rs 4.12 lakh to the bereaved family, while the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) has extended Rs 3 lakh as financial aid.

Angel Chakma, a 24-year-old MBA final-year student, succumbed to his injuries on December 26 after battling for life for 18 days in a hospital in Dehradun.

The family has demanded a CBI probe into the incident.

The killing triggered widespread outrage across all eight northeastern states, with several Chief Ministers and leaders from almost all political parties, including the BJP, Congress, Tipra Motha Party and Left parties, demanding strict punishment for those involved.

Several organisations held candlelight marches, torch rallies and protest programmes in Agartala and other places to condemn the incident.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader from Uttarakhand and former Rajya Sabha member Tarun Vijay also met Angel’s family recently and demanded the strictest punishment for the murderers.

Condemning the incident, Vijay had said exemplary punishment must be awarded to deter such crimes in the future. He added that the Tripura Chief Minister had held several discussions with his Uttarakhand counterpart regarding the case.

Vijay also proposed that Angel Chakma’s younger brother, Michael Chakma, be provided a government job in Tripura to ensure the family’s financial stability. He further suggested the formation of a special Northeast cell within the Uttarakhand Police to address cases of racial abuse and discrimination.

–IANS

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