Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s aide Bibhav Kumar, accused of assaulting Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Swati Maliwal, on Wednesday, moved the Delhi high court to challenge his arrest.
Kumar, in his plea, has also sought to be paid “appropriate compensation” for his “illegal” arrest, reported ANI.
Earlier on Monday, Kumar’s bail plea was dismissed by a sessions court, which said that there was no “pre-meditation” by the AAP MP in lodging the FIR, adding that the allegations against Kejriwal’s aide cannot be “swiped away”. A day later, a Delhi court sent Kumar to three days of police custody, noting its “bonafide requirements”.
According to the court, the police “cannot be deprived of its right” to recover the mobile phone which he was carrying at the time of Maliwal’s alleged assault.
“The presence of the accused in a room where NVRs (network video recorders) are installed is not denied by him or his lawyer. To the mind of this court, the reason for remaining there for a sufficient time is obviously a question which needs to be investigated for which custodial interrogation is necessary,” Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Goyal said, as quoted by PTI.
However, Kumar’s counsel opposed the Delhi police’s plea for his custodial interrogation, claiming that they had “no evidence to nail him” and “no justification for seeking his custody”.
Meanwhile, the court allowed Kumar’s applications for medicines and daily meetings with his advocates, wife and daughter.
Kumar was arrested on May 18 after Maliwal, in an FIR, accused him of physically assaulting her at Kejriwal’s residence on May 13. According to the FIR, Kumar repeatedly slapped her and ksicked her in the stomach and pelvic area.
Following the complaint, the police registered an FIR against Kumar under sections 354, 506, 509, and 323 of the IPC, which deal with crimes like assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty and criminal intimidation.
Shortly before his arrest, Kumar also complained to the Delhi police, saying that Maliwal had abused him with the intent of assault.
(With inputs from agencies)
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