Central minister, politician running sex racket in Delhi: DCW chief

New Delhi, Sep 22: Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal on Thursday said a prostitution racket at GB Road in the national capital's red light area was operating under the protection of a central minister and a senior leader of a national political party.

Asked to name the two, Maliwal told reporters that the names will be disclosed "very soon".

Maliwal's statement comes in the wake of registration of a case against her by the Anti-Corruption Branch of the Delhi government on Monday night over a complaint of irregular recruitments made in the panel.

Maliwal, an Aam Aadmi Party leader, said she had been conducting raids at various establishments on the GB Road for the last few days.

"I had been trying to understand how this prostitution business worth thousands of crores of rupees is being run openly at a distance of barely three km from parliament. During our investigations, we have got strong indications that this business is being run under the protection of a central minister and a senior politician from Delhi of a prominent national party," she said.

"I pray to God that these indications turn out to be false. But it does raise some questions," she said.

"How can such a racket run at a distance of three km from Parliament? Why is MCD not taking any action to raze illegal structures despite repeated complaints? It's because this is an organised racket, and has earnings of over Rs 5 crore per night," she said.

Maliwal claimed she is even being threatened to not pursue the GB Road issue or face "dire consequences".

"While our investigation was going on and we had just got clues on the involvement of some prominent persons, suddenly a 'false' FIR was filed against me. And now I have been getting messages that these leaders will get me arrested and will have me removed from the DCW through the Lieutenant Governor's intervention," the AAP leader said.

Maliwal said if she continues to remain at the helm of the DCW, she will put an end to the prostitution racket run from GB Road.

On Monday night, a case was filed against Maliwal by the ACB on the complaint of Congress leader Barkha Singh Shukla, a former head of the DCW.

The DCW chief was booked under Sections 13 (Criminal misconduct by a public servant) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 409 (Criminal breach of trust by public servant) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

Maliwal said it's a conspiracy by a few people who don't like "questions being asked by us".

IANS