On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court instructed the Delhi Chief Secretary to investigate and address the allegations made by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Abhay Verma. Verma had claimed that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government was selectively installing CCTV cameras in areas represented by the party's legislators.

A Division Bench consisting of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued an order while addressing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition filed by BJP leader Abhay Verma. The Court instructed the Delhi Chief Secretary to consider the PIL as a representation and to make a decision within two weeks.

Verma, who represents Delhi’s Lakshmi Nagar assembly constituency and is also the Vice President of BJP Delhi, informed the Court that during his budget speech for 2020-21, then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had approved the installation of 1.4 lakh CCTV cameras. However, he claimed that the Delhi PWD Minister was given authority over the installation process.

Advocate Satya Ranjan Swain, representing Verma, argued that the Public Works Department (PWD) was implementing a selective policy, installing CCTV cameras only in areas where ruling party leaders were elected.

In response, Delhi Government’s Standing Counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi assured the Court that the cameras were being installed based on detailed surveys and stakeholder inputs, and denied any bias in the process.