New Delhi [India], August 18 (ANI): Heavy security forces, including personnel from the Delhi Police and paramilitary units, were deployed near the Khichripur Bus Stand on NH-24 following widespread outrage over the fatal stabbing of a sanitation worker in East Delhi’s Kalyanpuri.
The incident triggered protests by local sanitation workers demanding justice, swift arrest of the perpetrators, and adequate compensation for the victim’s family.
The agitation quickly escalated into a major political confrontation after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders alleged that local MLA Kuldeep Kumar was detained by law enforcement while raising his voice in support of the victim’s family.
Speaking with ANI, Jha condemned the state of law and order in the national capital, emphasising that violent crimes are taking place openly while representatives speaking up for victims face police action.
Announcing an ongoing sit-in, AAP leaders declared they would not clear the demonstration site until police clarify the MLA’s location and status.
“Murders are taking place openly yet the police do nothing, while those who raise their voices are being detained? Delhi is the national capital… we will not leave this place until we find out about Kuldeep Kumar,” said Jha.
Jha hit out at the police administration, questioning why authorities were concealing Kuldeep Kumar’s location after taking him into custody.
“Our MLA Kuldeep Kumar was speaking about the murder of a sanitation worker when he was detained by the police…The police are not disclosing Kuldeep Kumar’s whereabouts. What are they hiding?” he added.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi following allegations made by his party that police “picked up” MLA Kuldeep Kumar from his residence.
“Prime Minister Modi Ji, Where is our MLA Kuldeep Kumar? At 4 AM this morning, your Delhi Police picked up Kuldeep Kumar from his home, broke the CCTV cameras, and took the DVR along with them. Your police is not telling us anything. If the police can pick up an MLA from his home like this without any information or any reason, then where can the common man in this country go for help? This country will not tolerate such thuggery from you,” said Kejriwal.
The incident comes amid a protest over the alleged murder of a Municipal Corporation of Delhi sanitation worker, Anil Kumar, in Kalyanpuri, with AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleging that Delhi Police picked up Kuldeep Kumar from his residence at around 4 am after he raised the issue of compensation for the deceased worker’s family.
Anil was carrying out his sanitation duties when he was allegedly attacked with a knife. Police have since said the accused, identified as Nihal, has been arrested and, according to preliminary information, “the accused committed the crime due to a personal enmity”.
In a post on X, Bharadwaj alleged that around 20 people from Delhi in plain clothes arrived at around 4 am and took Kuldeep Kumar to an undisclosed location.
In another post, Bharadwaj said Delhi AAP Vice President and MLA Sanjeev Jha was reaching the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), East, to ascertain Kuldeep Kumar’s whereabouts.AAP alleged that police were also forcibly carrying out the last rites of the deceased sanitation worker.
According to the allegations, sanitation workers had been sitting in protest for two days following the murder and were demanding Rs 1 crore compensation for the victim’s family.
The party further alleged that the police brought the deceased’s body from the hospital to the family home and threatened to conduct the cremation immediately.
In a Facebook post, Kuldeep Kumar’s team said supporters should continue the protest until “Anil gets justice” and urged people to reach Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital.
AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha, who said he had been waiting outside the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, East, for over two and a half hours without getting any response, posted on X about the situation.
“This morning at 4 AM, people in plain clothes came and took Kuldeep Kumar away. The cameras at his house were smashed, and the DVR was also taken. It’s afternoon now, but there’s still no information on where Kuldeep ji is. I’ve been standing outside the DCP Eastern Range office for the last two and a half hours. I’ve been trying to meet and talk to the DCP, but I’m not getting any response. My direct question to the Delhi Police Commissioner is–has raising one’s voice for justice for Dalits now become a crime? Will a current MLA who speaks out against murder be intimidated into silence? This arrogance is not right. Voices cannot be suppressed by the might of police uniforms and batons,” he said. (ANI)
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