The White House pointed to New Delhi’s low murder rate in 2024 to strengthen its argument for federal intervention in Chicago as US President Donald Trump prepares to extend National Guard deployment to the Illinois
city.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said Chicago’s homicide rate last year stood at 25.5 per 100,000 residents- nearly 15 times higher than Delhi’s 1.48. A White House chart circulated earlier compared the murder rates of 11 world capitals, placing Washington DC, at the top with 27.64. Delhi ranked ninth, ahead of only London and Madrid while Islamabad was fourth with 9.2.
Chicago, a city of 2.75 million, recorded 573 homicides and 2,189 sex crimes in 2024. Washington, with a much smaller population of about 700,000, saw 187 murders and 143 sex abuse cases. In comparison, Delhi, home to 34 million people, reported 504 murders and 2,076 crimes against women last year.
Donald Trump’s Chicago Move
Donald Trump has already sent National Guard troops and federal officers into Washington, citing public demand to tackle violent crime. Chicago, he said, would be “the next federal deployment.”
The US President called the city “a mess,” adding that Chicagoans were “screaming” for help. He has also hinted that New York may follow. The National Guard operates under both state and federal control and has previously seen overseas combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But Donald Trump’s plan to extend its use domestically faces legal hurdles. The US Constitution contains no explicit provision for federal intervention in states owing to which Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has vowed to resist Donald Trump’s takeover.
“We will not stand idly by if he decides to send the National Guard to intimidate Chicagoans,” JB Pritzker warned.
Earlier, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser also opposed the deployment in the capital but has since admitted that violent crime has fallen.
“When carjackings go down, when homicides go down, neighbourhoods feel safer,” she said, noting that the city has not recorded a murder since the Guard’s arrival.
Donald Trump has also pledged tougher measures, including using the federal death penalty and prosecuting juveniles as adults. He has pressured states to roll back cashless bail by threatening to cut federal funds. The US Pesident has cast his crime crackdown in partisan terms, noting that nearly all of the 25 US cities with the highest crime rates are Democrat-run.
