Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said that BJP leader Manoj Tiwari, who has been demanding National Register of Citizens (NRC) in the national capital, will have to leave Delhi if such a list was compiled.

Kejriwal made the statement while responding to a question on the BJP’s Delhi chief Tiwari saying that illegal migrants were responsible for the increase in crime in Delhi. “If NRC was implemented in Delhi,Tiwari will have to leave first,” the Chief Minister said.

Tiwari, also a Lok Sabha lawmaker from Delhi, was quick to retort accusing the chief minister of losing his mental stability. “People who have migrated from other states are considered as foreigners by you (Delhi CM)? You want to chase them out from Delhi,you’re one among them.If this is his intention then I think he has lost his mental stability. How does an IRS officer not know what NRC is? the BJP leader said.

Tiwari has on several occasions demanded Assam-like NRC exercise in Delhi. His rationale for demanding such a list is to put a stop to spurt in crimes, which he alleges is due to the increased presence of illegal migrants. “The Kejriwal government should not only identify and expel illegal migrants for the safety of the people but also ask the Centre for an NRC exercise in the capital,” he had said. Tiwari alleged Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was “silent” over the issue due to “appeasement” politics.

Kejriwal’s comment drew instant reaction from former party colleague and BJP leader Kapil Mishra who tweeted a video saying: “Chief Minister Kejriwal’s NRC comment is pointless…He says if there is NRC in Delhi then people from Bihar and UP will have to leave. This is shameful. Some people don’t understand that the ‘N’ in NRC is for ‘National’”.