His assurance came when a delegation of students from the region met him during the day seeking his intervention in increasing incidents of harassment and assault against them.
The delegation led by N-E Congress Committee general secretary Sharif Laskar made three specific demands: appointment of a senior police officer from the region in Delhi to listen to their grievances, a helpline for the students to ensure immediate police response to an attack and measures to sensitise landlords and shopkeepers to the needs of northeastern students.
The delegation told the Congress leader that recent incidents were a clear pointer to northeastern students becoming `soft targets' in the Capital.
Rahul, according to the delegation members, showed "serious concern" over the issue and promised to do everything possible to improve the situation for them.
Talking to reporters later, Laskar said northeastern students were facing "racist attacks" because of their physical features and their vulnerability for being from a faraway region.
He said the killing of a Naga girl and molestation of a student from Arunachal by a group of boys over the past few days had shaken their confidence and added to the community's sense of insecurity.
The delegation had submitted a memorandum to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and met minister of state in the PMO Prithviraj Chavan. They alleged police indifference to their plight and asked for better police deployment and patrolling in the areas of their concentration.
Laskar said that appointment of a police officer of DCP rank from the northeast to deal with their issues would instil confidence in the community.