Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convener Arvind Kejriwal, reacting to party MLA Naresh Balyan’s arrest, termed it a warning for the people of the city that if anyone challenges gangsters will be sent to jail.

Accusing the Centre of inaction on the rising crime in Delhi, Kejriwal dared Home Minister Amit Shah to arrest the real culprits, instead of silencing voices against lawlessness.

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Addressing a press conference here, the AAP chief claimed that over the past two to three years, the law and order situation in the city has deteriorated significantly. He said the AAP MLA’s fault was that he too had been a victim of gangsters. But instead of arresting the gangster who intimidated Balyan, the MLA was arrested.

Kejriwal further said while Balyan had been receiving extortion and other threat calls from gangsters for two years, he formally lodged a written complaint with the Delhi Police and named a gangster ‘Nandu’ recently. In his written complaint, he informed the police about
receiving threats to him and his family with a request for police protection.

The AAP chief said Balyan was asked by the gangster to contact his potential targets to convey a message of extortion and to collect extortion money from his targets.

Kejriwal said despite the threats, the AAP MLA did not give in to the gangster’s demands. However, he expressed concerns over surveillance around his home and office by suspicious individuals, noting risks to his family, who live alone and could be targeted in his absence.

“As a citizen of Delhi and someone who has earlier served as chief minister, I can tell you that people are deeply concerned,” he said.

The AAP supremo emphasized that Delhi residents are living in constant fear, claiming that they don’t know when or what might happen to them.

Recounting a recent incident that took place in West Delhi’s Nangloi, where two persons on motorcycles stopped outside a shop and opened indiscriminate firing, he said when he tried to visit the area, BJP workers blocked his way and prevented him from reaching the site.

He claimed that fear among Delhi’s businesspersons is on the rise with a spike in the number of extortion calls, and if they refuse to give in, there would be firing outside their premises.

He said matters related to Delhi’s education, healthcare, electricity, and water are under the jurisdiction of the elected government, run by the AAP, but the safety of national capital residents and the law and order situation are directly under the control of the Union Home Ministry.

He said when he raised his voice on the city’s law and order situation, he expected that the Centre would address it, instead he was attacked as a person threw liquid at him during a foot march while one of the AAP MLAs was apprehended.