Darkness at noon

He may be the Union minister of state for home affairs, but that hasn’t prevented Delhi’s thieves from striking at his house for the second time. Last year, on November 26, burglars broke into Ajay Maken’s house in Rajouri Garden — given his clout, however, the police were able to recover the stolen items later. This year, on October 24, burglars tied up his security guard and broke into his wife’s Swift to get the music system. Sadly for the thieves, since their previous thefts in the area had alerted the neighbours, a crowd gathered by the time they were doing their work at the Makens. Anxious to get away, the thieves left behind not just what they’d stolen from Maken’s house and car, but also left behind what they’d decamped with from the neighbours. That’s a nice ending, but it’s of little comfort to Maken’s neighbours who’d thought having the junior home minister in their midst would make their lives that much more secure.