Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Delhi Assembly and Kalkaji MLA, Atishi, has hit out at the BJP’s four-engine government, holding it responsible for the complete collapse of law and order in the national capital. She was speaking after late Friday night’s shocking murder inside Kalkaji temple, where a sevadar was brutally beaten to death with rods and sticks by a group of goons.
Meanwhile, senior AAP leader and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia took to ‘X’ and wrote: “A sevadar inside the Kalkaji Temple in Delhi was brutally beaten to death. Are even Delhi’s temples no longer safe? Taking someone’s life over something as trivial as not giving a chunni in the prasad, and the police just standing by as spectators. This is the state of “law and order” under BJP’s four engines. When such incidents start happening even inside temples, imagine how unsafe the common people of Delhi must be feeling.”
In a video message, Delhi Assembly LoP and Kalkaji MLA Atishi stated, “At the Kalkaji temple last night, some goons mercilessly thrashed a sevadar with rods and sticks until he died. The video is heart-wrenching. But this is not the first example of Delhi’s deteriorating law and order situation.”
Listing a series of recent incidents, she added, “Just a few weeks ago, there was a triple murder in Maidan Garhi. A few days later, in Nizamuddin, a man was stabbed to death over a parking dispute. In IP Extension, when a man tried to stop a thief from running away with his bag, he too was murdered. Such incidents are happening every single day in Delhi.”
Atishi stressed that criminals no longer fear the police. “When those goons were killing the sevadar with rods and sticks, it was clear they had no fear of the Delhi Police. Why? Because they believe the police will never catch them. This is the same Delhi Police that calls Lawrence Bishnoi ‘Sahab,’ treating him as their boss. That is why today, every gangster feels that the Delhi Police is in their pocket and will not act against them. Meanwhile, the people of Delhi are living in fear,” she said.
Holding CM Rekha Gupta and the BJP accountable, Atishi said, “I want to ask Rekha Gupta, is this your four-engine government? Women in Delhi are living in fear, the elderly are living in fear, the youth are living in fear. Is this what the BJP has given to Delhi? Today, every government is yours—the Prime Minister belongs to BJP, the Union Home Minister belongs to BJP, the LG is BJP’s, the Delhi Police is BJP’s, and Delhi’s CM Rekha Gupta is also BJP’s. Despite this four-engine government, the BJP has failed to provide security to the people of Delhi.”
Concluding with a strong message, the Kalkaji MLA declared, “Today I want to say this to Rekha Gupta—not only as an MLA and Leader of Opposition, but as a daughter of Delhi—that people of this city are living in fear and terror. If you cannot provide security to the people of Delhi, then you should resign from your post.”
LoP Atishi writes to CM Rekha Gupta urging her to resign if she cannot provide safety to Delhi’s citizens:
I wish to draw your attention towards the continuously deteriorating law and order situation in Delhi. Conditions in the capital have become so bad that now people do not feel safe in their homes, markets, or even religious places.
Recently, inside the Kalkaji temple, a sevadar serving there was brutally beaten to death by 5–6 men over a minor dispute. This entire incident has been captured on camera. This is not just an isolated case but evidence of the completely broken state of law and order in Delhi.
Even as I write this letter to you, news is coming in that a property dealer’s house has been fired upon for refusing to pay a ₹5 crore extortion demand. Several such terrifying incidents have come to light just this month:
• On 10th August, the Tikri Pul murder took place in Maidan Garhi.
• On 8th August, actor Huma Qureshi’s cousin Asif Qureshi was murdered in Nizamuddin over a parking dispute.
• In IP Extension, barely 200 metres from the Delhi Commissioner of Police’s office, a youth was stabbed during an attempted phone and bag snatching.
These circumstances are not limited to ordinary citizens. Even you yourself, the Chief Minister, were recently attacked. If the Chief Minister is not safe, then one can imagine the condition of ordinary citizens.
The most shameful and shocking fact is that senior officials of the Delhi Police themselves are addressing a dangerous gangster like Lawrence Bishnoi as “Sahab.” It appears that for the Delhi Police, criminals like Lawrence have now become their “Sahab.” What greater proof is needed to show that law and order has completely fallen into the hands of criminals, while the police stand powerless?
The BJP’s four-engine government has today completely failed. The public had expected that with four engines together, security and development would be accelerated, but the truth is that all four engines have jammed in Delhi.
Delhi has today become the capital of violence, loot, extortion, and gang wars. Criminals are fearlessly committing crimes in broad daylight while the police are engaged only in formality and paperwork.
Hon’ble Chief Minister, the time has now come for you and your four-engine government to move beyond showmanship and speeches and to fix accountability. The people of Delhi are asking:
• How long will the people of Delhi remain unsafe?
• How long will criminals continue to commit crimes openly?
If you cannot ensure the safety of Delhi’s citizens, then you have no right to remain in power. It would be better if you resign, because the people now want action, not excuses.
