On Sunday, Vanlalruat Kima, 32, from Mizoram was hanging out with his north-eastern friends. The group was chatting near a roadside stall in Malabar Hill when a police van slowed down and an officer allegedly passed racist comments at them.
“I had great respect for the Mumbai police and never expected them to behave like this. The cop used words such as Nepalese and Kathmandu and yelled for no reason,” said Kima.
Appalled, he posted a blog titled ‘Dear Mumbai Police, can I buy you a cup of tea?’. He has invited policemen for a cup of tea to discuss the issue.
Joint commissioner of police Sadanand Date responded to the blog, assuring Kima of action against the officer. The Mumbai police have begun an inquiry.
“We will record Kima’s statement and based on what exactly happened, take appropriate action,” said Date. “We will also inquire into what made the cop pass such comments.”
Date added that he is open to the idea of a meeting to clarify Kima’s stand and create awareness but if the cop is found guilty, he will be booked as per law. Kima, a mobile phone game developer, has been living in Mumbai for the past five years. He has been blogging a lot about the problems faced by North-East people in other parts of the country.
“I was deeply hurt by the incident and decided to vent it out on my blog,” he said.
“The need of the hour is not punishment or violent protests but education. People should know about our identity and that we also come from respectable families and have jobs. People confuse us with Nepalese and ridicule us all the time.”
Kima said he was in touch with the Mumbai police and has requested to have a friendly meeting with senior police officials as well as the cop who insulted them.
“I want to meet that cop over a cup of tea and explain our background and identity. I want to tell him how we struggle in a city like this. I don’t want any punishment for him,” said Kima. The inquiry is being conducted by DCP (zone II) Nisar Tamboli.
“This is a sensitive issue and we will take action to ensure such incidents do not happen,” said Tamboli.