Atishi Accuses Double-Engine Govt of Avoiding Discussion on Delhi's Law and Order Issues

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, has written a letter to Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, accusing the double-engine government of blocking discussions on the deteriorating law and order situation in the city. Atishi criticized the government's decision to reject discussions on issues such as rising crime, including murder, robbery, rape, and shootings, and alleged that the Delhi government had "failed" to address these concerns.

Atishi slammed the "shocking" decision to dismiss opposition members' questions regarding the increasing crime rate in Delhi. She claimed that despite AAP MLAs raising concerns from their constituencies, their questions were removed, with the justification that "law and order does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Assembly."

In her letter to Speaker Vijender Gupta, Atishi questioned why incidents like rape and shootings would be excluded from discussions in the Assembly. She also took aim at the BJP-led central government, accusing it of trying to avoid addressing the rising crime rate in Delhi and covering up its failures. Atishi emphasized that the refusal to discuss such critical issues would not solve the problems faced by the people of the national capital.

Atishi further pointed out that under Rule 280, the Delhi Legislative Assembly had allocated time for special mentions. However, several AAP MLAs had their special mentions on the rising crime rate rejected by the Assembly Secretariat, which argued that law and order was not within the Assembly’s jurisdiction. This, she said, was "unprecedented" and had never happened since the formation of the Delhi Assembly.

Highlighting the central government’s failure to control crime in Delhi, Atishi argued that avoiding discussion on such issues would only serve to cover up the problems. She called on Speaker Gupta to ensure that all issues concerning Delhi, particularly the worsening law and order situation, were discussed in the Assembly, stressing that preventing such debates was an affront to democracy.