In order to tackle crime against women, justice has to be certain and swift, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday, deploring “tendencies to shield” sons of politicians involved in such cases.
While delivering his Independence Day speech at Chhatrasal Stadium, Kejriwal said Governments should ensure freedom for women instead of imposing restrictions on them. "A politician's son, guilty of such crimes, should be awarded double the punishment as stipulated in statute books,” he said in the backdrop of the Chandigarh stalking case involving the son of Haryana BJP chief Subhash Barala.
"The most important thing in such cases is deterrence. There should be certainty and swiftness when it comes to punishment. Now when a politician's son commits any such crime, the entire system comes together to shield him," he added.
In his 14-minute-long address, Kejriwal said many countries, which got independence after India, have raced ahead in terms of development as they invested more in education.
"We have been in Government for the last two years. I derive the greatest satisfaction from our work in the education sector. We are in a way bringing revolution in the education sector. Poverty can be eliminated if we sincerely educate a generation," he said.
Chief Minister said that the no-detention policy ruined the education system while underlining that 60,000 students who failed in Class X this year will be readmitted.
"Previous Governments introduced no-detention policy till Class VIII. It ruined the education system. When students took their first exam in Class IX they failed enmass…They appeared through open school in Class X and 60,000 students failed," he said while addressing the gathering
"I assure all 60,000 students who failed in Class X that they will be readmitted and special classes will be held for them."
The Union Cabinet had earlier this month approved the scrapping of the no-detention policy in schools till Class VIII.
An enabling provision will be made in the Right of Children for Free and Compulsory Education Amendment Bill which will allow states to detain students in Class V and Class VIII if they fail in the year-end exam.
However, the students will have to be given a second chance to improve via an examination before they are detained. The Bill will now be placed in the Parliament for approval.
When the vector-borne diseases have taken over the entire country, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Delhi Government would come out with a detailed plan to check spread of dengue and chikungunya, in the next 10 days.
Kejriwal said the Government would take steps on war-footing to tackle the spread of vector-borne diseases.
He asked for the support from the people of Delhi. Underlining that the people should extend their support in eradicating Dengue and Chikungunya from Delhi like they extended for the AAP's famous odd-even scheme, Kejriwal said: "In the next 10 days, we will come out with a detailed plan to tackle dengue and chikungunya in Delhi. There is a need to act on a war-footing against these diseases."
So far, 500 cases of dengue have been reported in the city. The number of people affected by malaria till August 12 this year has climbed to 385, while the figure for chikungunya stands at 283.