NEW DELHI: The Delhi police today tendered an unconditional apology to the High Court following the rap it got on its knuckles over not naming all the officials patrolling the area in which a 23-year-old girl was gangraped and brutally assaulted last month.
“I tender my unconditional apology for not giving names of the policemen who were on duty in the PCR vans concerned, though their names have figured in the charge sheet as they are witnesses in the case,” Dayan Krishnan, counsel for Delhi Police, told a bench headed by Chief Justice D Murugesan before filing the fresh status report.
After the apology, the Court accepted a fresh status report filed by the police during hearing on the case which was taken up by the court suo motu following the incident.
“The status report says that police personnel deployed on the PCR vans are the witnesses in the case and the charge sheet has their names. So, what was the difficulty in showing their names in the status report? You should have told us this earlier,” the bench also comprising Justice V K Jain remarked.
The court had yesterday taken strong exception to the fact that only a junior police officer was suspended in connection with the case and that senior ones, including the police commissioner, were not made accountable.
“Why only ACP, why not DCP, why not the Commissioner, have been put to task?” the bench had remarked.
During the hearing, the court also said, “We direct the police officials to ensure removal of dark film/tinted glasses and curtains from the vehicles in Delhi without any delay.”
The court, meanwhile, asked the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to take immediate steps to increase the number of PCR vans in the Capital to ensure better safety of citizens, including women.
-PTI
