Caught on tape: Somnath Bharti present during tests on Ugandan women

New Delhi, Jan 20:

leader and New Delhi law minister

has landed himself in a controversy yet again. The law minister was spotted talking to the doctors in AIIMS at 5 am today where the Ugandan women, accused of prostitution and drug peddling, in the Thursday vigilante were undergoing tests.

He reportedly wanted to oversee the proceedings himself. Meanwhile, the detained women have lodged a complaint against Bharti for mistreating them and falsely implicating them.

The Delhi police has lodged an FIR against Bharti and others and have asked the women to identify them. One of them also sought his resignation, saying,"Police helped us. I thought people were going to kill us. The way they were treating us as if we were criminals. We are not criminals. The minister who conducted the raid should be made to resign. What he's doing is not right. We just want to go to our embassy."

Bharti wanted to 'see' the undergoing himself.

Strongly condemning the action by Bharti was the External Affairs minister Salman Khurshid who expressed concern over the maltreatment of foreign nationals. He said,"I think it's shocking, completely unconstitutional, unacceptable. I am worried about attitude here which just because you see someone different from you put label of worst kind of social evil on them. It's completely unacceptable. What face will we show to the world that in India we have people with such narrow, such ridiculous way of treating foreigners."

Ethiopian Ambassador Gennet Zewide also expressed her displeasure with the turn of events and said,"Of course we're very much concerned, our nationals are being harassed like that. It is not only a concern to African ambassadors but to everybody. I think the way it was handled, was not appropriate. It is not right and it has to be condemned. We'd like to have measures where every citizen, including our citizens of Africa, either for education or medical reason or tourism, have to feel safe."

Defending Bharti is Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who appreciated the surprise vigilante of his ministers and stressed the fact that the Delhi police should be answerable to the state and not the Centre.

OneIndia News