Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has demanded the Delhi police to suspend three police officers for 'refusing to act' against alleged criminals, at the instance of law minister Somnath Bharti and Woman and Child minister Rakhi Birla.
Kejriwal voiced his demand when he met Lietenant Governor Najeeb Jung and Delhi Police commissioner BS Bassi on Friday, complaining that the police did not act on the complaints of the two ministers, NDTV reported.
Angered by the incident, the chief minister on Thursday accused the police of being "a highly compromised force."
Kejriwal blamed the Delhi Police after he was severely criticised by Congress and BJP for not doing enough about the gang-rape of a Danish woman in the heart of Delhi a few days ago. His Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has also come under staunch criticism after law minister Somnath Bharti named the Danish woman.
Adding fuel to the fire, the chief minister came under the scanner for a controversial statement. "if you don't arrest drug and sex offenders...this is where tendencies of rape begin," he had said.
"Why are rapes happening in Delhi? If crime does not happen in Delhi, it is not because of the Delhi police, but in spite of it," Kejriwal said at his press conference Thursday. At the conference, Somnath Bharti explained that his attempt to carry out a surprise raid on what he alleged was a drug and prostitution ring failed because police refused to act and he ended up in an argument with them.
Congress condemned the act saying that the ministers cannot be directly involved in raids and orders must be made through proper channels. Former police officer Kiran Bedi, in a national television talk show on Thursday, said that AAP members have still not moved forward from the "activist's mode" to a "governance mode".
