Sheila is right, Delhi cops at fault of inaction

New Delhi, Feb 22: Giving another weapon to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit to attack Delhi Police, the Justice Usha Mehra Committee has found fault with the police. In its report on the Delhi incident, the committee has said that there is no coordination between Delhi Police and other police departments in the NCR region.

The committee today submitted its report on the December 16, 2012 gangrape incident to the Centre. While the report said that there was no delay in the response of PCR (police control room), it blamed the Delhi Police for not stopping the bus inside which the horrific crime was committed.

"We did not find lapse in police response to the PCR call on 100...response was within 6 minutes of the PCR call," Justice Mehra has said. But it also agreed that there was huge shortage of PCR vans and public transport in the national capital.

Sheila Dikshit has been criticising the police in the wake of the gangrape incident and even demanded resignation of Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar. She had also regretted not having any control over functioning of the police which functions under direct control of Home Ministry.

This month Dikshit had sought the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention to ensure better policing in Delhi and complained that the force has failed to deliver on its promise to improve women's safety after the December 16 incident.

In a letter to the prime minister, Dikshit had said situation remained unchanged as no visible improvement in policing has been witnessed in the city in the last two months though police had assured enhanced security for women following the incident that sparked massive public outrage.

The chief minister had requested the prime minister to look into the issue seriously and take appropriate steps. Dikshit had also mentioned about functioning of the security commission which frames guidelines on maintaining law and order and suggested that its recommendations should be considered seriously.

The Union Home Ministry last month had made changes in composition of the commission making the Delhi chief minister part of the panel which was set up in 2010 on the recommendation of the Justice K T Thomas committee on police reform.

Dikshit had written a similar letter to Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde asking him to take effective steps for improvement in policing in the city so that women feel secure.

In the letter, she has referred to massive public anger in the wake of the brutal gangrape of a 23-year-old paramedical student two months back and said "Nothing has changed even after the widespread public anger against the police."

OneIndia News