‘Why We Have Small Eyes…’: Nagaland Minister Counters Racism With Humour

The Nagaland’s minister said, "My eyes are small, but my vision is sharp."

The BJP leader even spoke about the advantages of having small eyes.

(Photo: The Quint)

Video Editor: Prajjwal Kumar

“Small eyes keep the dirt away and it often helps us to doze off,” joked Nagaland BJP President, Temjen Imna Along, as he responded and countered racial slurs targeting North-Easterners.

Viral videos of the state’s higher education and tribal affairs minister grabbed headlines and trended on social media after he was seen giving back to the trolls, cheekily, during public addresses.

Sharing his videos, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said, "My brother is in full form."

Talking about popular stereotype that northeastern people face, the BJP leader even spoke about the advantages of having small eyes.

Here is a list of the state minister’s comments that shattered his trolls.

• People say that those from the Northeast have small eyes. Our eyes are small, but our vision is sharp. The advantage of having small eyes is that it keeps the dirt out. Also, it helps with dozing off in the middle of a long speech.

• In 1999, when I got off at the old Delhi railway station, I realized that the station was more crowded than the entire state of Nagaland. I was shocked. And they used to ask, "Where is Nagaland? Do we need a visa to visit Nagaland?" There were rumours that the people from Nagaland eat human beings and they suspected us.

• In 1999, I visited the Taj Mahal. I was standing in the queue and when I reached the ticket counter, I was escorted to another queue. They asked for $20 which I had never seen or heard about, in my life. I had to convince them that I am from Nagaland. Some of them asked, "Which land? Switzerland or Finland?"