“I admit there was a serious lapse on the part of the police in the Nithari case. The lives of many children could have been saved if the police had lodged complaints and behaved properly with the villagers,” he told The Indian Express at the Idea Exchange on Thursday.

While it was learnt that the Governor had written to the state government on Wednesday, Minister of State for Home, Sriprakash Jaiswal indicated, during a visit to Nithari today, that the Centre would be willing to direct a CBI probe if the state asked for it. The state government did not immediately react to the advice from Raj Bhawan.

Over at the Express, Mulayam defended the alertness of the “best officers” in Noida whose “prompt action,” he said, had led to the quick arrest of the accused.

“Though I am yet to read the report by the two-member committee (UP Home Secretary A K Sinha and Additional DGP (Law and Order) A C Sharma).

I spoke to them on the phone when I came to Delhi yesterday. Based on the feedback, I have taken action against the policemen who were involved in the Nithari case,” Yadav said.

Last night, Yadav suspended SSP Piyush Mordia, who was SSP Noida and is now posted as SSP Ghaziabad, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Saumitra Yadav and Circle Officer Sewak Ram Yadav. He also dismissed six police personnel who were in charge of the Nithari chowki.

Residents of Nithari and adjoining sectors of Noida have alleged that when they went to lodge complaints, the police said their daughters might have eloped.

“Two things have come to my notice: that many FIRs were never lodged, and the officers at the police posts behaved badly with the complainants. This calls for the harshest punishment and that is why I have dismissed so many officers,” said Yadav.

Yadav claimed that he did not receive any communication, written or oral, from the local BJP MLA on the issue. “I have been in the Assembly with BJP MLAs and they never told me anything on the Nithari case. I have never received any letters from them either. When the situation was so bad, why was I never told about this?” he said.

He, however, admitted that he received a letter from the National Commission for Women.

Yadav said he was not planning to visit Nithari soon. “Whenever I go to a troubled spot, I am surrounded by my administrative set-up that makes communication difficult and takes away from the main cause. I am planning to send Amar Singh instead,” he said.