Kejriwal, AAP ministers, MLAs to protest outside Home Ministry

New Delhi: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, all his cabinet colleagues and AAP MLAs will stage a dharna outside Home Ministry from Monday if punitive action is not taken against policemen allegedly involved in tiffs with two Ministers of Delhi government.

"We will sit on dharna outside Home Minister's office from 11 AM on Monday if our demand for suspension of police officials is not met," senior Delhi Minister Manish Sisodia said.

He said in the meeting with Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, Kejriwal demanded action against the policemen who refused to cooperate with Law Minister Somnath Bharti in cracking down on an alleged prostitution ring in South Delhi two days back.

The AAP government also sought action against a policeman who had tiff with Women and Child Development Minister Rakhi Birla in Sagarpur of West Delhi.

The Chief Minister had also blamed police for the way in which it handled the gangrape case of a Danish tourist on Tuesday.

In his meeting with Shinde, Kejriwal demanded suspension of SHO of Malviya Nagar and two ACPs for refusing to take action against the alleged sex and drug ring. He also demanded action against Sagarpur SHO for involvement in an altercation with Birla.

Officials said the Chief Minister has informed the Home Minister that in case his ministry does not suspend the four policemen by 10 AM, Monday, he will be forced to sit on a dharna along with his cabinet colleagues and MLAs from 11 AM outside the North Block.

Sisodia said the Chief Minister brought to the notice of the Union Home Minister the growing incidents of heinous crimes in the capital, particularly against women, including the brutal gangrape of the Danish tourist. Kejriwal termed as "callousness" Delhi Police's handling of the "serious situation".

The Chief Minister apprised the Home Minister about two recent incidents of alleged collusion between Delhi Police and criminals in two different areas of the city.

Kejriwal also handed over a letter about the series of incidents of crimes in the capital to Shinde. "The Delhi government has informed the central government about the indifferent attitude of Delhi Police in making the capital safe for its citizens," said an official.

The Chief Minister has also appealed to the people of Delhi to join the dharna. He particularly asked those facing hardships due to "non-cooperative and unprofessional attitude" of the police to join the protest.

In his letter to Shinde, Kejriwal demanded handing over of control over Delhi Police to Delhi Government without any "further delay".

"It has been a long standing demand of Government of NCT of Delhi for full statehood. Through this letter, I wish to state that control over Delhi Police should immediately be transferred to Delhi Government without any further delay," he said.

In the letter, the Chief Minister said if any crime takes place in Delhi, the people of Delhi question the city Government rather than questioning the Home Minister.

"The expectations of the people of Delhi are from the elected Government of Delhi rather than the Central Government," Kejriwal said.

Citing the two incidents involving Bharti and Birla, he said they "clearly indicate the urgency and necessity of transferring control over Delhi Police to the elected Government of Delhi."

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal and his Cabinet colleagues Rakhi Birla, Somnath Bharti and Manish Sisodia met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung where Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi was also present along with the four police officials who were under fire from the AAP ministers.

At the meeting, which lasted for about an hour, Kejriwal and the ministers raised the issue of women's safety in the capital while calling for action against the concerned policemen.

The LG has ordered a high-level inquiry into the cases but the demand for suspension was turned down by Bassi. At a press conference, Sisodia refused to accept police's argument that it cannot raid any premises if there was no adequate ground.

"The police enter people's homes as and when they want, without warrants. But refuse to act against a sex and drug racket," he said. 

Next: I will always stand by my men: Delhi Police Chief

I will always stand by my men: Delhi Police Chief

New Delhi: Delhi Police on Friday defended its officers' stand during the recent confrontation between them and Law Minister Somnath Bharti as Police Commissioner B S Bassi said he will "always stand by his men."

"Our job is to protect the people of Delhi...whatever my officers told me is prima facie correct. As the Delhi Commissioner of Police, I always stand by my men," Bassi said after he met Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde at his office here.

The Commissioner said he would only be able to comment on the details of the case, where Bharti and police officers had a tiff for launching a raid on alleged drug and sex racket in south Delhi's Malviya Nagar, once the report of the inquiry constituted by Lt Governor Najeeb Jung is completed.

"The LG has ordered an inquiry. I will be able to take action only after the report comes," he said. Bassi also said he came to the Home Ministry to discuss administrative issues with Shinde.

"I have come here for administrative issues...I have not talked about this (Kejriwal's demand)," he said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, along with his cabinet ministers Bharti and Rakhi Birla, earlier met Shinde and demanded that Delhi Police be brought under Delhi government as suspension of the policemen who he said were allegedly negligent in the discharge of their duties as found by his ministers.

Bharti and Birla have accused three police officials of non-cooperation in two separate cases.

Bharti has charged Malviya Nagar police did not cooperate with him for conducting a raid on Nigerian nationals whom he alleged were involved in a drugs and sex racket at Khirki village while Birla has accused Sagarpur police of shielding the members of a family who allegedly burnt their daughter-in-law over dowry demands.