Arvind Kejriwal’s aide arrested, AAP claims Maliwal ‘blackmailed’ by BJP
NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police on Saturday arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s aide Bibhav Kumar for allegedly assaulting Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal inside the CM’s house in Civil Lines area of the national Capital.
Swati Maliwal has accused Bibhav Kumar, Kejriwal’s personal assistant, of repeatedly slapping her and kicking her in the stomach and pelvic area when she went to meet the CM on May 13. The Delhi Police have booked Bibhav Kumar under stringent sections of the Indian Penal Code. He was arrested from the Delhi Chief Minister’s house in the afternoon.
The AAP backed Bibhav Kumar, claiming Swati Maliwal was a pawn in the hands of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with a view to discredit Arvind Kejriwal, who is out on a Supreme Court granted bail till June 1, during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The party claimed that Swati Maliwal was “blackmailed’’ by the BJP as she faces a corruption case.
His arrest came two days after an FIR was registered against him at the Civil Lines police station. Swati Maliwal has already recorded her statement before a magistrate at the Tis Hazari court.
Police said they have recorded the statement of at least 10 people, including security personnel and other staff at the chief minister’s residence, who were present at the time of the alleged assault on May 13.
Earlier in the day, Bibhav Kumar wrote to police, saying that he is ready to cooperate in their investigation, but they should also consider his complaint against Maliwal.
On Friday, Kumar filed a police complaint, alleging Maliwal breached the security of the CM’s residence to gain unauthorised entry on May 13 and created a ruckus there.
The CM’s aide also alleged that when he tried to stop her she hurled abuses at him.
Senior AAP leader and minister Atishi, addressed a press conference, in which she said if the Delhi Police is impartial, it should also register an FIR on Kumar’s complaint. Atishi claimed the former DCW chief faces arrest in an illegal recruitment case and she was “blackmailed” by the BJP to become part of a “conspiracy” against Kejriwal.
Atishi alleged that Maliwal went to the chief minister’s official residence on Monday without an appointment.
She said Maliwal was made the face of this “conspiracy” by the BJP.
“The BJP has a pattern. First they file cases and then threaten to send leaders to jail. Swati Maliwal is facing charges in an illegal recruitment case registered by the Anti-Corruption Branch. An FIR has been registered in the case and it is at a stage where she could be arrested.
Meanwhile, another purported video of Maliwal from the day of the incident has surfaced online. In the video, a woman security personnel is seen holding Maliwal by her arm while escorting her out of Kejriwal’s residence. As they exit the main gate, Maliwal frees her arm from the security personnel’s grip. In the video, she does not appear in a wounded state and is walking normally.
Maliwal’s medical examination was conducted at the AIIMS on Friday. According to the medico-legal certificate (MLC), she has “bruises over proximal left leg dorsal aspect of and right cheek elbow below right eye.
The BJP, meanwhile, accused AAP leaders of tarnishing Maliwal’s image by circulating “edited” videos. Maliwal also attacked her party for dismissing as baseless her assault allegations against Bibhav Kumar, and said the AAP has given in under a “goon’s pressure” and is now questioning her character.
The AAP, Maliwal said, has made a “U-turn” two days after accepting that Kumar had “misbehaved” with her.
Kumar was later produced before Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Goyal.
Police, through their counsel, have sought his seven-day custody to question him in connection with the assault case. Police told the court that Kumar’s custody was necessary for questioning him about reason of assault.
They said Kumar did not provide the password of his mobile-phone to the investigating agency and had also informed that his phone had been formatted in Mumbai due to some malfunctioning in the device.
Police said before being formatted the data of a mobile phone has to be cloned and Kumar was required to be taken to Mumbai for retrieving the data. The accused’s presence was also needed to get his mobile-phone opened by an expert, they said. Countering the arguments, Kumar’s counsel Rajiv Mohan said neither was there any record of Maliwal’s visit to the CM’s residence before May 13 nor did she clarify the reason for registering the FIR only on May 16. The FIR was registered at the Civil Lines police station. He said that Maliwal visited the CM’s residence without an appointment and that the Delhi Police was distorting facts.
The advocate said neither did Maliwal seek any medical aid after calling the emergency helpline number 112 nor did the station house officer prepare any medical sheet after meeting her. Mohan alleged that Maliwal was politicising the issue of having suffered injuries and was also giving statements to the media. He said that Kumar’s mobile-phone was not required for investigation as Maliwal had nowhere alleged about threatening on phone or WhatsApp calls.
