Atishi seeks Rekha Gupta's resignation over Kalkaji temple sevadaar's murder

New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly and Kalkaji MLA, Atishi, on Saturday wrote to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, citing the killing of a sevadaar in the Kalkaji temple and claimed the national capital has turned into the "capital of crime, extortion and gang wars" under the BJP-led government.

There was no immediate response from the BJP or the Delhi government to Atishi's statement.

In her letter, Atishi alleged that Delhiites no longer feel safe in their homes, markets or even places of worship.

Referring to Friday's incident where 35-year-old sevadaar Yogendra Singh was allegedly beaten to death by a group of visitors following an altercation, she said the murder was "not an isolated case but evidence of the worsening law and order situation in the capital."

Listing recent incidents of violence, Atishi reminded the chief minister that a cousin of actor Huma Qureshi was killed in Nizamuddin earlier this month, a youth was stabbed near the police commissioner's office in I.P. Extension, and a firing took place at a property dealer's residence in connection with an extortion demand.

"Even you were recently attacked. If the chief minister herself is not safe, how can ordinary citizens feel secure?" she asked.

"This proves that law and order are in the control of criminals while the police have been reduced to helplessness," she wrote.

Slamming the "four-engine BJP government", Atishi said, "Instead of speeding up security and development, the four engines have jammed in Delhi. If you cannot ensure safety for Delhiites, then you have no right to remain in power. It is better if you resign."

Echoing similar sentiments, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal called out the BJP-led Delhi government over recent safety issues in the national capital.

"Didn't the hands of these miscreants tremble before they brutally murdered the sevadaar inside the Kalkaji Temple? If this isn't a failure of law and order, then what is it? The four engines of the BJP have brought Delhi to such a state that now such incidents are happening even in temples. Is anyone safe in Delhi or not?" he questioned in a post on X.