NE community in capital calm, but not taking chances

New Delhi: Dramatic images of people from the North East leaving en masse from Bangalore, coming in the wake of attacks on them in Pune and Hyderabad, has put the community in the capital on alert. Delhi has so far not seen any attacks or rumours of the kind being reported from cities in south India. The rumours alleged attacks targetting citizens from north eastern states following ethnic clashes in Assam that has left 77 people dead. [caption id=“attachment_420111” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  People have been fleeing from Bangalore since yesterday. PTI[/caption]Speaking about the predominant mood in the community, Raskan Jonah of the Naga Students Union, said, “For now, the students of the North East in Delhi are not feeling insecure. We are taking precautions so that no uninvited incidents occur. Student bodies and the North East communities are alert and ready to put pressure on the police to give extra attention to people of the North East so that what has happened in other cities does not happen here. But we feel that what has happened in other metros cannot happen in Delhi.” Explaining the reasons for the sense of security, Jonah said: “We have organizations here, our MPs are here, and there are many police officers from the North East in Delhi. For now, we don’t feel the need to panic.” To make sure all steps towards securing the community are taken, the All Assamese Students Assocation (AASA) is meeting the senior police officials later today. “We are going to meet Hibu Robin, the Joint Commissioner of Police, and the DCP, North Delhi. We will talk about the steps being taken in Delhi regarding security of North East students,” said Mitul Vikash Medhi, president of the Association. Reiterating the relatively better state of security in Delhi, he said, “The North East community in Delhi is safer than it is in Pune or Hyderabad. There have been instances of verbal abuse but no life threats and such. There is security to an extent, but not enough. We are leaving no stone unturned to beef up security.”