With just 10 days left for the February 7 elections, the 15,000-odd voters in the city, who hail from the North-Eastern states are feeling neglected. “Politics is all about vote-banks but it’s shocking that we are not considered one in Delhi despite our presence in almost all districts of the city,” said Pritam Deka, who re sides at Malviya Nagar with his family and has been working in Delhi for the past 10 years.
He further said that though all parties have pledged to bring women securityin Delhi, the question of racial discrimination remains unanswered. In the previous assembly elections, there were around 10,000 voters from the North-Eastern states. But before the Lok Sabha elections, as many as 5,500 more got themselves registered in a joint drive that was organised by the Delhi Election Commission and the North Eastern Council (the nodal agency for economic and social development of the region).
The voters include people from all eight states – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura and Sikkim.
“Racial discrimination is an all-pervasive menace in Delhi, which doesn’t spare us anywhere – residential colonies, roads, markets and even offices. And it also entails several other issues, the top amongst them is crime,” said Dr Sanjay Naiding, who resides at north Delhi’s Outram Lanes. He further said that things have changed in the past 10 years.
Today, people in Delhi are more sensitised about us. But that it largely due to education and joint efforts by young activists from the North-East states and several scholars from the national capital. It can’t be attributed to the political parties. Majority of North-East voters reside in assembly constituencies that come under south Delhi and south-east Delhi.
He further said that though all parties have pledged to bring women securityin Delhi, the question of racial discrimination remains unanswered. In the previous assembly elections, there were around 10,000 voters from the North-Eastern states. But before the Lok Sabha elections, as many as 5,500 more got themselves registered in a joint drive that was organised by the Delhi Election Commission and the North Eastern Council (the nodal agency for economic and social development of the region).
The voters include people from all eight states – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura and Sikkim.
“Racial discrimination is an all-pervasive menace in Delhi, which doesn’t spare us anywhere – residential colonies, roads, markets and even offices. And it also entails several other issues, the top amongst them is crime,” said Dr Sanjay Naiding, who resides at north Delhi’s Outram Lanes. He further said that things have changed in the past 10 years.
Today, people in Delhi are more sensitised about us. But that it largely due to education and joint efforts by young activists from the North-East states and several scholars from the national capital. It can’t be attributed to the political parties. Majority of North-East voters reside in assembly constituencies that come under south Delhi and south-east Delhi.