AAP slams Delhi Police prohibitory order, demands its withdrawal

New Delhi: AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Tuesday termed the Delhi Police's prohibitory order against Navratri as "Tughlaqi Farman" and demanded its immediate withdrawal.

The Delhi Police had on Monday issued a prohibitory order against any protests or gathering of five or more persons in the central and bordering areas of the city for the next six days citing law and order issues.

The order was issued under the section 163 (earlier section 144 of CrPC) of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita.

Bharadwaj hit out at Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and demanded his resignation, saying he was not able to handle the law and order of the city.

"This order is laughable and irresponsible; it has been issued to ban the festivals of Hindus, create chaos and harass Delhi people," the Delhi Minister said.

When elections can be held in Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana, then why can't a festival be held without restriction, he asked.

Bharadwaj said that even BJP leaders were not safe in the city and cited an extortion message a leader of the party in Uttam Nagar received.

AAP national convener and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in a post on X said that he was "very concerned" over the "deteriorating" law and order situation in the capital.