Arvind Kejriwal Attacks Modi, Seeks Control Over Delhi Police

New Delhi, Oct 18: On Sunday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal demanded control over Delhi Police and he said that he won’t allow Prime Minister Narendra Modi to sleep peacefully over increasing crime in the capital.

Referring to the former Delhi chief minister, Kejriwal told reporters after meeting Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung, “I am no Sheila Dikshit. I won’t let even PM (Modi) sleep peacefully”.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader questioned, “Why didn’t he (Modi) visit the families of rape victims when he can go abroad?”.

The remarks came after a toddler and a five-year-old child were raped in two separate incidents here. Kejriwal declared a special meeting on Monday of the Delhi cabinet to discuss about the women’s safety.

Sheila Dikshit ruled Delhi for 15 years before being defeated by Kejriwal and faced public wrath over the terrific gang-rape and death of a 23-year-old woman here in 2012.

She had then pleaded helplessness citing that Delhi Police was not under her control. This has been an issue which continues to be a sore point between Delhi’s AAP government and the central government.

Kejriwal said Delhi Police has been reporting to the union home ministry and the Lt. Governor and had become ineffective because of which criminals have no fear.

“Give Delhi Police to us for a year and see how we fix it. And if you can’t hand over the charge of entire Delhi Police, let us handle it in east Delhi,” he said.

“If law and order does not improve (in that period), take it back from us,” he added.

Referring to the case where a gang rape of the two-and-a-half-year toddler took place in west Delhi, the CM said that a state where a child could be kidnapped from a crowded place, how can you imagine that state having the safety for women.

On Friday night, the toddler was kidnapped from near her home and raped by two teenagers during a sudden power outage in the area. On early Saturday, she was found at a nearby park .

In east Delhi’s Anand Vihar, the five-year-old was raped by three men.

Kejriwal informed Jung — the two have been having a war for months over jurisdictional issues — that of the 31,000 FIRs registered since 2012, police had filed chargesheets in only 13,000 cases.

The usual police refrain was that they had filed an FIR, whenever there was a crime against women Kejriwal added.

Meanwhile, Congress activists protested to denounce Kejriwal’s remarks on Sheila Dikshit outside his house in Civil Lines area .