NEW DELHI: The Delhi government may have to pick up the bill for former law minister Somnath Bharti 's adventurism in Khirki Extension in January. National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday issued notice to the state asking it to explain why it can't compensate the 12 African women who allegedly suffered racial prejudice in the incident.

NHRC also asked the Delhi Police commissioner to inform it about the status of the FIR in the matter. While seeking a response from the state government, NHRC has invoked Section 18 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 to suggest that compensation can be recommended. The state government and the police have been given six weeks to respond.

"The commission passed the recommendatory orders after careful consideration of the report of its Investigation Division as well as the inquiry report of Shri B L Garg, retired additional district & sessions judge, and observed that it is prima facie proved that there was gross violation of human rights of the African national women in the instant case," an NHRC statement said.

NHRC has concluded from the report that "the African women were wrongfully restrained and humiliated without any fault of theirs as no drug was found from their possession. They were subjected to racist slurs, assault, humiliation, misbehaviour and molestation with threat of dire consequences."

It says the inquiry officer found police's conduct in the light of the intervention of then law minister Bharti "adequate and in conformity with the law" while the minister's role "was not as per the existing provisions of the law as prima facie he violated the provisions of law while holding the constitutional post".

NHRC had taken suo motu cognizance of the incident and asked the authorities concerned to respond.

On January 15 this year, when Somnath Bharti was the law minister in the Aam Aadmi Party government , he visited Khirki Extension in his constituency of Malviya Nagar, claiming a drug and prostitution ring was being run from a residence there and demanded that police raid the place. Police refused, pointing out that the officers had no warrant to conduct a raid. AAP supporters and workers then allegedly forced a couple of women from Uganda to give urine samples. An FIR was also registered in this regard after a court order.

