Christian school vandalism: Pressure mounting on Delhi Police chief BS Bassi to perform or perish?

New Delhi, Feb 14: After a Christian school (Holy Child Auxilium school) was vandalised by unidentified persons in the wee hours on Friday, pressure is mounting on Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi to perform or perish as the national capital has seen a series of vandalisation of churches in the recent past.

This was the sixth such attack on Christian institutions in the national capital since November last year. In January, some unidentified groups had vandalised a church in Vasant Kunj sparking outrage among the Christian community which alleged that it is part of a "hate campaign".

With these continuous attacks on Churches and now on a school, the top political leadership in the government is believed to be upset with the alleged lackadaisical attitude of Bassi, an appointee of the previous UPA government, under whose watch the incidents have taken place in recent months.

Bassi was appointed on July 16, 2013 when Sushilkumar Shinde was the Home Minister. He is scheduled to retire on February 2016.

Sources said the 1977 batch Union Territory cadre IPS officer has been conveyed by the top echelons of the government a fortnight ago to improve the law and order situation in the city.

The attack on Friday even prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to summon Bassi and order a crackdown on those involved in such incidents.

Expressing "deep concern and anguish" over the rising crime rate in the Capital, the Prime Minister asked the Police Commissioner to speedily investigate the recent incidents of vandalism and ensure that the guilty are brought to book.

Modi also spoke over telephone to Union Home Secretary L C Goyal and asked him to "pay special attention to the rising incidents of crime, and vandalism, and to work towards ensuring the safety and security of women in the Capital," an official release said. "The Prime Minister told me to take strict action against the perpetrators of such attacks," Bassi told PTI after meeting Modi.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who is on a tour of the Northeast, also spoke to the Police Commissioner and instructed him to conduct a speedy inquiry and find out the culprits responsible for the school attack.

HRD minister Smriti Irani, who is an alumnus of the school , visited the campus and met the school principal.

Police and authorities of Holy Child Auxilium school in south Delhi’s Vasant Vihar claimed that the attack was a case of robbery. Police said the office of the school principal was ransacked by a group of unidentified persons and six CCTV cameras found destroyed and a donation box was also missing.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal condemned the attack and said, "I strongly condemn the attack on Holy Child Auxilium school. These kind of acts will not be tolerated."

Bassi said the police is serious in investigating the cases which have occurred so far and efforts are on to ensure such incidents are not repeated.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called me today at his office and expressed his great worry on the incident pertaining to Holy Child school. He enquired about the details of various incidents which have occurred in recent months," he said.

"I told him about the details and also the efforts we have made about the security of the churches and he has directed me that Delhi police should do its utmost to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in future. Whatever is required to investigate the existing cases and ensure enhanced security of churches should be done. School authorities also claimed it to be a case of robbery.

"When the maid came to open the school, administrative office and principal's office were open. We found that six CCTVs were damaged and the principal's office was found ransacked, all cupboards were ransacked and all papers were thrown away. Around Rs 12,000 cash is also missing," Sister Lucy, school's principal, said.

She also said that the cameras inside the corridor were destroyed but the cameras outside are intact and the police is investigating and scanning the footage.

Sources said action may be initiated against Bassi if he fails to stop attacks on minority establishments and improve the overall security situation in the national capital.

OneIndia News

(With inputs from agencies)