The Union Home Ministry on Monday sought a report into the allegation that employees of North-East origin at an Ahmedabad hotel were asked to stay away from duty during Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent visit to the city. Sources said the Ministry asked the Intelligence Bureau to find out the veracity of the order and, if so, who issued it and why.
Meanwhile, Ahmedabad Police and the hotel management denied issuing any such instruction. There were also reports that northeast origin employees at a mall in Ahmedabad were asked not to come for duty on the day Xi visited the Gujarat capital last week.
The controversies also surfaced when reports said The Hyatt hotel in Ahmedabad had also asked their staffers from North Eastern region to stay away during the Chinese President’s visit. The MHA, according to sources, has asked the IB to send its findings immediately after probing the allegations of both the incidents.
last week, taking umbrage at the reports, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had said, “It is an insult to the northeast. They doubted us as if we are not patriots. Are we not citizens of IndiaIJ This is not good for the region.”
“I am not aware of any such diktat given by police to the hotel authorities about their staff. We were just concerned about the Tibetans,” said Joint Commissioner of Police(JCP)-Crime A K Sharma.
The hotel management expressed surprise over the reports and claimed all staffers, including those from the northeast, did duty on September 17 when Xi had a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi there.