Delhi Police on Thursday registered an FIR pertaining to the alleged assault on AAP MP Swati Maliwal by an aide of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The action comes amid criticism by the BJP, saying Kejriwal has maintained silence over the incident.
Bibhav Kumar, who is the personal assistant to Kejriwal, has been named in the FIR, PTI reported quoting officials. The National Commission for Women (NCW) has also summoned him over the issue on Friday.
Swati Maliwal took to social media to describe her ordeal and hoped for appropriate action while urging not to politicize the issue.
" What happened to me was very bad. I have given my statement to the police on the incident that happened to me. I hope appropriate action will be taken. The past days have been very difficult for me. I thank those who prayed. Those who tried to do character assassination, said that i was doing it at the behest of the other party, God bless them too," Swati Malwal posted on X.
"Important elections are going on in the country, Swati Maliwal is not important, the issues of the country are important. There is a special request to BJP people not to do politics on this incident," she added.
The FIR was filed subsequent to Maliwal's statement being recorded by a two-member team, led by Additional Commissioner of Police P S Kushwaha, during a visit to her residence in Central Delhi on Thursday that lasted nearly four and a half hours.
The FIR has been filed under Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 509 (insulting the modesty of a woman) of the IPC.
This development came about after Maliwal had filed a complaint at the Civil Lines police station, accusing Kejriwal's personal staff member of assaulting her at the CM's official residence.
In her complaint to the police, Maliwal has named Kumar as the main attacker when she went to meet Kejriwal. Maliwal has allegedly claimed that the Bibhav Kumar repeatedly slapped her and also punched her in the abdomen. She further claimed that CM Kejriwal was present in the house during the attack and was fully aware of the whole incident.
Delhi AAP leader Sanjay Singh had on Tuesday, at a Delhi press conference, admitted that Kumar had "misbehaved" with Maliwal. Delhi CM Kejriwal on Thursday dodged questions thrown at him by reporters on this issue during a joint press conference with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.
Opposition BJP has berated Kejriwal for his silence on the issue and termed him as the "prime culprit" in the assault, citing Kumar's presence with the CM during his recent visit to Lucknow.
NCW swung into action to summon Kumar after taking cognizance of Maliwal's allegations, and made it clear it was complying with their notice. Meanwhile, Congress joined the chorus in demanding stern action against the perpetrator of the attack and stressed the imperative for making Delhi safe for women.
Maliwal drew support from various quarters, including the Delhi BJP's Mahila Morcha, as they came to emphasize the need to protect the dignity of women and urged Maliwal to seek justice through legal channels.
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