Kerala House raid: Be careful in future, Rajnath tells Bassi

In the wake of a political furore over the 'raid' by Delhi Police at Kerala House here over a beef complaint, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said he had advised the city police chief "to be careful while acting on such complaints in future".

"I have advised Delhi Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi to take stringent action against Hindu Sena leader Vishnu Gupta and asked Bassi and his team to be careful while acting on such complaints in future," Rajnath Singh said in an interview to 'India Today'.

Rajanth Singh said he was willing to express regrets to Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, and would meet the latter after returning from poll-bound Bihar.

Chandy on Wednesday threatened Delhi Police with legal action if it did not accept its mistake in "raiding" the official state house in Delhi.

"The action by Delhi Police was not acceptable," said Chandy, who wrote a letter to the central government to express disapproval over the entry of police inside Kerala House without prior permission.

The Delhi Police entered Kerala House on Monday evening to check if it served beef.

The union home minister criticised filmmakers, scientists, artists and authors for returning their awards to protest against growing intolerance and violence in the country.

"Their actions reek of a devious political conspiracy," he said, adding, "Any award with the Ashoka emblem on it is a national honour and to return it is to dishonour the nation and not the present government."

Many eminent writers and professionals have returned their awards to protest against growing intolerance and violence in society.

As for the lynching of a Muslim man in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh and eminent Kannada writer M.M. Kalburgi's murder in Dharwad in Karnataka, Rajnath Singh said he - as union home minister - could not intervene in law and order issues of the states "even if I wanted to".