Court dismissed the bail request of Bibhav Kumar, a close aide to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, emphasizing the seriousness of the allegations made by complainant and AAP MP Swati Maliwal. Kumar faces accusations of assaulting Maliwal at the Chief Minister's residence.
The court explained that it cannot ignore the victim's allegations. The court further elaborated that the delay in lodging the FIR is not fatal as the injuries are recorded in the MLC. The court further observed that if the incident was pre-planned then the FIR would have been lodged at the earliest. It is an early stage of investigation, and the possibility of tampering with the evidence and non-appropriation of the witnesses cannot be ruled out.
In view of the allegations, the court finally held that there were no grounds for granting bail to the applicant at this stage.
Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Goyal denied Kumar's bail after listening to arguments from both parties.
During the hearing, Rajya Sabha MP Maliwal expressed concerns for her safety and the safety of her family if Kumar were released. She mentioned receiving threats following the circulation of a “one-sided video” about the incident " about the incident created by a YouTuber.
Videos from the Chief Minister's residence on the day of the incident, May 13, have appeared on social media. One video shows Maliwal in a confrontation with security personnel, and another depicts her leaving the CM's residence in Civil Lines.
Maliwal's counsel submitted that despite Kumar being jail, Maliwal is continuing to receive threats. He accused Kumar of formatting his phone, deleting CCTV footage related to the incident, questioning his innocence.
Additional Public Prosecutor Atul Srivastava submitted that Maliwal did not trespass into the CM's residence and termed Kumar as "influential" though he is terminated from his service.
Kumar’s attorney requested bail, asserting that his client met the “triple test” for bail: he is not a flight risk, nor is he likely to tamper with evidence or influence witnesses.
Kumar's counsel claimed that his client was cooperative with the police and that the FIR was filed three days late as an "afterthought." Kumar was placed in judicial custody for four days on Saturday and is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday.
His anticipatory bail plea, filed on May 18, was deemed "infructuous" by the court following his arrest.
