By Dipankar Ghose & Aditi Vatsa/ The Indian Express

The Aam Aadmi Party, the party that rules Delhi, is in damage control mode in Khirki Extension with regular interactions with members of the African community over the past few days.

Party sources said the three African women, who complained to the Delhi government of being held against their will and forced into prostitution, had initially contacted Law Minister Somnath Bharti after he gave out his mobile number to members of the African community in an interaction on January 31.

Bharti has been under fire for a midnight raid on January 15, which has been described as “racist” in several quarters.

Sources said Bharti, the Malviya Nagar MLA met with representatives of the African community on January 31, during which he handed out his phone number. “These three women called Somnath Bharti and told him of their grievances. After hearing them out, the party facilitated the process of their complaints reaching the police,” a source in the AAPsaid.

According to police, in their complaint, the Ugandan nationals have alleged that they got in touch with a woman who promised them a job in Delhi. When they reached the city, however, the woman warned them against complaining and took away their passports. Later, they alleged, the woman confined them and pushed them into flesh trade, police said, based on their complaints.