Artist claims racial threats forced him to flee

By A Staff Reporter

IMPHAL | Dec 31

A photographer Lambamayum Kishorjit Meitei who went to take part in National Level Photography contest Dantewada Chattisgarh resorted to escaping by climbing out of the hotel window fearing racial violence against him.

Speaking to media person at Manipur Press Club, Kishorjit, 28, resident of Sagolband Tera Sapam Leirak said that on December 8 the organiser Click Baster or Unexplored Baster had sent him mail informing him of his selection among 30 competitors from 540 entries.

He left Imphal on December 16 for Chattisgarh and reached the next day. The organiser arranged his lodging at Pool Club Hotel or Transit Hostel Dantewada. “On December 20 they announced the final result and I stood in 3rd position”, he shared.

The competition was held for three days and during those days there were cordial relationships between competitors and organisers. However after the declaration of the result their attitude towards me was totally changed. They started addressing me with derogatory terms like ‘chinky, China Man’.

They also started using threatening language while addressing me, he explained.

He said he was frightened as he remembered all past incidents of racial violence, killings, and human trafficking of North Easterner in other part of India. That’s when he started thinking of escaping, he added.

He imagined that if he didn’t run away from them by climbed down from 2nd floor of hotel my parents might see me as a dead body, he continued.

Mother of the victim L. Memton Leima said that the case of murders or any unwanted incidents that is being faced by North Easterner is not a new thing. And so far most of the cases were dumped and culprits didn’t get befitting punishment. So now it is the high time to think about bringing solution so that such merciless incident may not recur, she added.