Updated
New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI): BJP's vision document for the Delhi assembly polls today stirred up a controversy by referring people from north eastern states in the national capital as "immigrants", after which Congress demanded an apology and removal of the words.
The 24-page document that entails the party's roadmap in taking Delhi forward by making it a world-class city and steps in public welfare includes a section on "Northeastern Immigrants to be Protected".
The section talks of special cells in all police stations and 24-hour helpline numbers to be set up "for protection of north-eastern migrants".
"Special cells in all police stations and special 24-hour helpline numbers to be set up for the protection of the NorthEastern migrants. To safeguard the students of NE origin, special guardianship will be arranged with local families for them," the document says.
Congress was quick to react, with its leader Ajay Maken questioning "is BJP trying to say the people from the North East are not Indian citizens?."
"BJP's vision document has a pointer called 'north-eastern immigrants to be protected'. The word immigrant is used when people move from one country to another, so does BJP consider people from the North-Eastern states as residents of some other country or the Northeastern states according to them are not part of India?
"We demand that they remove that line from the manifesto and apologise to public," Maken said.
He said the document with such reference to people from north east comes at a time when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is on a visit to China.
"If the ruling party is saying such things in its manifesto then on what basis Swaraj is talking to China about how its force enters the state of Arunachal Pradesh and other areas, we need to understand that," he said.
The national capital has witnessed a spate of racial attacks and discrimination against people from north east in the recent past and a NE student Nido Taniam, son of of an Arunachal MLA, died after being badly beaten by shopkeepers at a Lajpat Nagar market here.
The Centre had formed a special committee headed by North Eastern Council member M P Bezbaruah to recommend steps to address the concerns of people from NE region living across the country.
Earlier Report
BJP's 'Vision Document 2050' for Delhi polls puts development first
New Delhi, Feb 3 (NDTV): Four days before elections in Delhi, the BJP today released its Vision Document 2050, promising a world class city, a corruption free government and 24-hour water supply. The party's presumptive chief minister Kiran Bedi said the document addresses everybody's need but "women's safety" was one of her priority areas.
Bedi was flanked by senior leader Anant Kumar and state BJP chief Satish Upadhyay. "Corruption in any department will not be tolerated. This includes the police," said the former police officer.
Bedi has already extensively tweeted what she calls 'Kiran's blueprint' for Delhi.
The document focuses on development in line with PM Modi's agenda.
Last week, the BJP scrapped plans to release a manifesto and decided to give Delhi the vision document instead; the manifesto was reportedly stuck due to differences between key state leaders over the demand for full statehood for Delhi.
That lack of consonance - mainly a deep sulk among senior leaders over Bedi being picked to lead - has the BJP worried as it battles a resurgent Aam Aadmi Party, whose chief Arvind Kejriwal the party acknowledges is the man to beat.
Several pre-election surveys give AAP an edge in the elections to be held on Saturday, February 7, and the BJP has, in a last lap burst, deployed its topmost leaders campaign in the city, led by PM Modi who addressed two rallies in two days over the weekend and addresses another today.
NDTV's poll of three major opinion polls says Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Admi Party will get 37 seats in the Delhi election - two more than the half-way mark - and the BJP will place second with 29 seats, two down from the last election in December 2013.
The BJP has been out of power in Delhi for the last 16 years. It fell five seats short of a majority in the last assembly elections in December 2013. AAP was runners-up with 28 seats in the 70 member assembly.