Racial slur on Tripura youth: Amir Shokeen arrested, FIR in Agartala

Delhi Police on Thursday, October 22, arrested Delhi-based influencer Amir Shokeen after a video showing him using a racial slur against a young man from Tripura went viral, ThePrint reported. Cases have been registered in both Delhi and Tripura.

The FIRs

Delhi Police's North District registered an FIR on its own at Sadar Bazar police station, where Shokeen lives, Deputy Commissioner of Police Niharika Bhatt said. It invokes four sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita:

• 192: provocation with intent to cause a riot
• 196: promoting enmity between groups
• 352: intentional insult to provoke a breach of peace
• 353: statements that may cause public mischief

Bhatt said Shokeen had a criminal record, including alleged physical altercations and a molestation case, and that the language in the video was a very serious offence.

Delhi Police's IFSO unit is providing technical help, and the Special Police Unit for North Eastern Region (SPUNER) is assisting the probe.

In Agartala, police registered a case on Wednesday and were expected to travel to Delhi. Chief Minister Manik Saha directed the Director General of Police to coordinate with Delhi Police.

Rijiju's warning

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju condemned the video. In a post on X on Wednesday, he said the accused would be punished, acknowledged a delay in lodging the official complaint, and said Delhi and Tripura police would act.

Students' complaint

The Tripura Students Forum Delhi (TSFD) complained to the Joint Commissioner of Police, SPUNER, on Wednesday seeking an urgent, impartial investigation. It asked police to look into anyone who took part in or recorded the video and to preserve the original file, metadata, account details and upload history.

TSFD president Shakti Barma told ThePrint that Shokeen had posted an apology calling the young man his friend, but said the two were not friends and the young man worked at a business run by one of Shokeen's friends. Shokeen has said the video was a "joke" and, according to Barma, also claimed it was scripted. Barma said the young man was fine and that people from the North East continue to face discrimination.

What happened next

Two days later, on October 24, a Delhi court sent Shokeen to five days' police custody so that police could take him to Ahmedabad, where the video was shot, to identify others involved.