The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday accused the BJP-ruled Central government of failure to improve law and order in Delhi, a day after the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released its report for 2016 that found the Capital had the highest number of crimes against women.
The NCRB’s Crime in India 2016 report had Delhi on top again, with the Capital reporting 33.1% of all crimes against women cases in the country. The AAP hit out against the Centre, which controls the Delhi Police through the Union Home Ministry.
“Delhi has become the capital of crime in the tenure of the BJP. The Centre as well as the Delhi Police are not accountable. We have been demanding that the issue of women’s safety should not be politicised,” said AAP spokesperson Dilip K. Pandey.
AAP MLA from Chandni Chowk Alka Lamba added that BJP-ruled States had also fared poorly when it came to crimes against women.
“We are not asking for the resignation of the Home Minister or for him to express sadness. We are asking for him to do something to address the issue,” she said.
Richa Pandey Mishra, the president of the AAP women’s wing, said the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) as well as AAP MLAs had been asking the Centre to take certain steps to improve women’s safety.
Demands reiterated
She reiterated the demands for setting up mahila thanas , 33% women in the police force, special task force for women’s safety, setting up thana-level committees and six-month trials of rape cases.
Deputy Speaker in the Delhi Assembly and AAP MLA from Mangolpuri Rakhi Birla said the AAP government had tried to improve the situation by starting work on installation of CCTV cameras and increasing the DCW’s budget.
“If the Centre cannot ensure safety for women in Delhi, then they should hand over control of Delhi Police to the Delhi government,” she said.
