Protesters heckle Sheila Dikshit at Jantar Mantar, force her to go back

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Saturday bore the brunt of protesters as she visited Jantar Mantar to pay homage to the Delhi braveheart, who died over 12 days after the most heinous sexual and physical assault aboard a moving bus by six men.

The protesters chanted anti-Delhi government slogans and asked the Chief Minister to "go back".

The Chief Minister and police tried to reason with the protesters and allow her to be part of the gathering but the demonstrators were in no mood to oblige.

However before leaving Jantar Mantar, she lit a candle and prayed for the departed soul. "I had gone there to express my grief at the death of the girl," she told PTI when asked about her visit to Jantar Mantar.

"Do you want to politicise somebody's death? Why didn't she come when the protests first began? She even asked police to remove us when we protested outside her residence," a protester said. Within minutes, she was escorted out of the area by police.

Dikshit had, earlier in the day, urged Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to allow the protesters to hold their demonstration at India Gate, a plea that was duly turned down. The Centre said India Gate was not a designated venue of protest and that handling huge crowds would be difficult at the site.

The Delhi braveheart died at 2.15 am IST on Saturday at the Singapore hospital where she had been shifted just days ago. The 23-year-old succumbed to severe organ failure following serious injuries to her body and brain.

With additional information from PTI

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