Union Minister Uma Bharti on Friday apologised to the people of the Northeast for the “immigrants” remark in the BJP’s Vision Document for Delhi polls. The Water Resources and River Development Minister who was in Guwahati for the inauguration of Assam Water Conference, 2015, said the Northeast region is very close to Centre and has no ill feeling towards them.

“ I request the people of the region not to have any ill-feelings because we sincerely want the region’s development. We will apologise not once, but thousand times,” said Uma. The timing of the Central minister came just hours before Delhi voting day and it is a double strategy. There was a huge outrage when BJP's Vision Document quoted Northeast as immigrants but no leader from the party acknowledged or apologised. As the Central minister is touring the Assam, the apology came just to avoid the unnecessary.

It would have been much better if BJP would have apologised much earlier. The party would get certain mileage in the Delhi polls but it is high time now.

- TVR