The recent deaths of two students from the Northeast in two major metropolises have led to an outcry, with the old allegation that those from the region face discrimination elsewhere in India resurfacing. But the two cases seem very different. And so far there is no evidence suggesting racial discrimination was the cause of either Dana Sangma’s suicide or Richard Loitam’s suspected murder.
A lot of people, particularly those from the Northeast, feel some form of racial discrimination occurred in both cases. The reason is simple: it is undeniable that a lot of people from the region, who look distinctly different from “mainland” Indians, face discrimination in many parts of India.
There has long been a paradox in the behaviour of many fervently nationalistic Indians. On one hand, they want people in the Northeast as well as Kashmir to give up their struggles for independence and join the mainstream. On the other, the same people often mistreat Northeasterners and Kashmiris, refusing to accept them as equal citizens of this country. You can’t have it both ways — if Kashmir, Nagaland or Manipur are an integral part of India, you have to treat the Kashmiris, Nagas and Manipuris as fellow Indians.
But Northeasterners, some of whom are known to harass people from Bihar and West Bengal living in their region, must also realise that their cries of discrimination might carry more weight if they weren’t guilty of practising it themselves.