New Delhi:

The Delhi High Court has refused to quash an FIR against AAP MP Swati Maliwal for allegedly disclosing the identity of a 14-year-old rape victim who succumbed to injuries.

Justice Neena Bansal Krishna said Maliwal’s claim that she was protected from prosecution as her actions were in good faith would have to be proved at an appropriate stage and there was no ground for closing the proceedings in the present plea.

Delhi Police registered the FIR against Maliwal in 2016 when she was the chairperson of Delhi Commission for Women, and said there was a blatant violation of provisions of Juvenile Justice Act, which protect the identity of a minor victim of sexual offence.

“Prima facie, offence under Section 74 read with Section 86 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 is clearly disclosed. Insofar as the petitioner’s claim that she has protection under Section 100 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 for her actions done in good faith is concerned, it is her defence which is required to be proved in accordance with law at the appropriate stage,” the court said on February 13.

The judge added, “Therefore, there is no ground for quashing of the FIR and the proceedings…” Maliwal sought a court-monitored probe in the matter, saying despite the minor’s death, the police did not invoke the murder charge in the FIR.

The court said the prayer was infructuous as a chargesheet was filed in the two cases in relation to the incident and the cases were pending trial.

It is now for the trial court to consider them and no fruitful purpose would be served by referring further investigation to an SIT, the court said.

The minor girl succumbed to injuries on July 23, 2016 in a hospital after being sexually assaulted by her neighbour who allegedly forced a corrosive substance down her throat and damaged her internal organs.

The police said Maliwal circulated a notice she had sent to the area deputy commissioner of police, in which she sought to know about the investigation in the rape case.

The notice, which was given to the print and electronic media, reportedly named victim.

The FIR alleged that the notice was “intentionally circulated” on various WhatsApp groups and shown by TV channels.

On account of the presence of the consent of the victim’s parents to disclose her name, Section 228A (Prohibition on disclosure of identity of the victim) of the IPC was dropped and Section 74 of the Juvenile Justice Act was added in the case. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal was detained by the police Thursday afternoon after she dumped three mini-truckloads of garbage outside the residence of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in protest.

Earlier in the day, Maliwal visited Vikaspuri, where she claimed that the streets were choked with waste, posing severe health and hygiene issues for residents.

Maliwal, along with a group of supporters, collected the garbage in three mini trucks and headed to Kejriwal’s residence at 5, Ferozeshah Road.

Accompanied by hundreds of women holding placards that read, “Muskuraiye, AAP Delhi Mein Hain,” Maliwal dumped the garbage outside Kejriwal’s house, using a shovel to throw waste onto the ground. Soon after, she was confronted by female police personnel and removed from the site. She was subsequently detained and taken to the Parliament Street Police Station.

According to Maliwal, she was released after a few hours and an FIR was registered against her under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code for violating prohibitory orders.

After her release, Maliwal told reporters, “For the past ten years, Arvind Kejriwal has ensured that Delhi becomes a giant garbage dump. Roads are broken, drains are overflowing, and waste is piling up everywhere. Women and children are forced to live in unhygienic conditions, and yet the government does nothing.” 

Earlier, Maliwal shared a video on X, showing her and others collecting garbage from Vikaspuri. “There have been heaps of garbage on the roads in Vikaspuri for years. People are very angry. They are going to collect all this garbage and dump it at Kejriwal’s house,” she wrote in the post.

She added, “The condition of the entire Delhi has deteriorated. The filth and stink that Delhiites face daily will be faced by Kejriwal ji today. The public is coming, Kejriwal ji, don’t be afraid.” Maliwal has had a strained relationship with AAP and Kejriwal since last year when she alleged that she was misbehaved with at his residence by his personal secretary. The matter is currently being heard in court.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday made a pit stop to savour vegetable momo at a roadside stall while out campaigning.

The AAP shared a video on X from its official handle, showing Kejriwal eating steamed momo amid cheers from supporters.

“The relation between momo and Delhiites is a bit deeper. During campaigning in New Delhi, a momo seller offering Kejriwal momos to eat,” the party said in its post.

Kejriwal, an MLA from the New Delhi constituency since 2013, faces challenge from BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’ Sandeep Dikshit, who have allowed no let up in their attacks on the former chief minister in their jousting for Delhi’s throne.

In the video, the AAP supremo can be heard asking the vendor for one piece of “veg momo”. He then picks one piece from a plate and invites others to share the rest with him.

दिल्लीवालों और मोमो का रिश्ता थोड़ा गहरा है

नई दिल्ली विधानसभा में चुनाव प्रचार के दौरान एक मोमो वाले भाई ने दिल्ली के बेटे @ArvindKejriwal जी को रोककर खिलाये मोमो pic.twitter.com/ydnOddSK5y

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) January 19, 2025

“Na,” Kejriwal said, when the seller asked him, “chutney khate ho (do you eat chutney)?” The election for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will be held on February 5. Results of the polls will be declared on February 8.

The Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party has pulled all the stops to retain its power in Delhi for a third time in a row. The party routed the BJP and Congress back-to-back in 2015 and 2020 Assembly polls in Delhi.

The BJP was reduced to just three seats in 2015 and then eight seats in 2020 elections, while the Congress drew blank both times. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal has said that the Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party have announced support to his party in the upcoming Delhi assembly elections.

Mr Kejriwal, who is the former Chief Minister of Delhi, also hit out at the Congress for “partnering” with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) discreetly. 

All the four parties – AAP, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party and Congress – are partners in the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) and had jointly fought the Lok Sabha elections last year. 

In a post on X on Wednesday, Mr Kejriwal said he is “personally grateful” to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is also the Chairperson of the Trinamool Congress, for extending her support. 

“TMC has announced support to AAP in Delhi elections. I am personally grateful to Mamata Didi. Thank you Didi. You have always supported and blessed us in our good and bad times,” the former Delhi Chief Minister said.

TMC has announced support to AAP in Delhi elections. I am personally grateful to Mamta Didi. Thank you Didi. U have always supported and blessed us in our good and bad times.

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) January 8, 2025

Minutes later, Trinamool’s Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien responded to Mr Kejriwal’s post, saying: “We have your back @AamAadmiParty.” 

On Tuesday night, Mr Kejriwal extended his gratitude to Samajwadi President President Akhilesh Yadav for his party’s support to the AAP in next month’s polls. “Thank you very much Akhilesh ji. You always support and stand with us. I and the people of Delhi are grateful for this,” he wrote in Hindi on the micro-blogging platform, as he shared a news report claiming that the SP will support the AAP in the polls.

There was no public statement or announcement either from Mr Yadav or the Samajwadi Party on the matter but sources said that he expressed his intent to support the AAP, after a press conference on Tuesday.

बहुत बहुत शुक्रिया अखिलेश जी। आपका हमेशा हमें सपोर्ट और साथ रहता है। इसके लिए मैं और दिल्ली की जनता आभारी हैं। https://t.co/as58s2ksDt

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) January 7, 2025

The Trinamool and the Samajwadi Party had thrown their weight behind the AAP in the 2020 Delhi assembly elections as well. 

Mr O’Brien had uploaded, on X, a video endorsing not just Mr Kejriwal as Chief Minister but all AAP candidates.

As the AAP swept the 2020 elections, Mr Yadav congratulated Mr Kejriwal on the big win. 

Meanwhile, Mr Kejriwal hit out at the Congress after its leader, Ashok Gehlot claimed that AAP leaders are delusional about its victory in the next month’s polls.

“They are our opposition. It’s their misconception that just because they have won the previous two elections, they will repeat their performance this time. The Congress is campaigning well and we know that the results will be good this time,” Mr Gehlot said. 

Hitting back, Mr Kejriwal said the Congress has made it clear that the “AAP is its opposition in Delhi”. “People also felt that AAP is the opposition for Congress and BJP is its partner. People also believed that BJP and Congress are fighting the elections together against AAP. Till now this cooperation between you two was secret. Today you have made it public. Thank you on behalf of the people of Delhi,” the AAP National Convenor wrote on X. 

Both the AAP and the Congress have been locked in an intense battle, over various issues, for quite some time. Though the two parties fought the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Delhi under the INDIA bloc, they are fighting the assembly elections separately. 

The two parties had blamed one another for the poll debacle in the Capital during the parliamentary elections.

Last month, Delhi Congress leader Ajay Maken’s remarks that a tie-up with the AAP during the Lok Sabha polls was a “mistake” further worsened relations between the allies. The AAP said it will ask other members of the INDIA bloc to remove the Congress from the alliance, if the latter does not act against Mr Maken for his remarks.

Voting for the 70-member Delhi Assembly will be held in a single phase on February 5 and the results will be announced on February 8.

The Congress, which was in power for 15 consecutive years in Delhi, suffered setbacks in the last two assembly elections and failed to win any seat. In contrast, the AAP dominated the 2020 assembly elections by winning 62 out of 70 seats while the BJP got only eight seats.

New Delhi:

Senior AAP leader and Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot resigned from the party today, but the seeds of discord between Mr Gahlot and the AAP leadership were sown on August 15 over unfurling the national flag during the Delhi government’s Independence Day celebrations, sources have said. 

In the absence of the then Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was in jail on charges linked to the alleged liquor policy scam, the task of unfurling the flag was under scrutiny. Mr Kejriwal had directed that Atishi, then the Delhi Education Minister, should perform the ceremonial duty. However, Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena intervened, deeming the direction invalid and designating Delhi Home Minister Kailash Gahlot for the job instead.

The Lt Governor’s decision was backed by the logic that the Home Department oversees Delhi Police, which organises the ceremonial march-past. This move, however, set off a fierce tug-of-war between the AAP-led Delhi government and the Lr Governor’s office.

The AAP accused the Lt Governor of undermining its authority, calling the move “petty politics.” Atishi slammed Ms Saxena’s decision, labelling it an act of “dictatorship” and questioning the BJP’s commitment to democracy. Mr Gahlot’s compliance with the Lt Governor’s directive appeared to strain his relationship with Mr Kejriwal and the AAP.

In December last year, the law department was taken from Mr Gahlot and handed over to Atishi. According to sources, there was a lot of work pending with the department which contributed in the decision to take it away from Mr Gahlot.

In his resignation letter, Mr Gahlot did not mince words. He described the controversies engulfing AAP as “embarrassing and awkward,” singling out the “Sheeshmahal” debacle – a term used to mock Mr Kejriwal’s residence expenditure – as an example of misplaced priorities.

“Let me start with sincerely thanking you for having given me the honour of serving and representing the people of Delhi as an MLA and a Minister. However, at the same time, I also want to share with you that today the Aam Aadmi Party faces grave challenges. Challenges from within, to the very values that brought us together to AAP,” Mr Gahlot’s letter read. 

“Political ambitions have overtaken our commitment towards people, leaving many promises unfulfilled. Take for example the Yamuna, which we had promised to transform into a clean river, but never got around to doing it. Now the Yamuna River is perhaps even more polluted than ever before. Apart from this, now there are many embarrassing and awkward controversies like the ‘Sheeshmahal’, which are now making everyone doubt whether we still believe in being Aam Aadmi.

“Another painful point has been the fact that instead of fighting for people’s rights we have increasingly only been fighting for our own political agenda. This has severely crippled our ability to even deliver basic services to the people of Delhi. It is now obvious that real progress for Delhi cannot happen if the Delhi Government spends the majority of its time fighting with the Centre,” the letter added.

The BJP seized the moment to target AAP. BJP leaders framed Mr Gahlot’s resignation as proof of AAP’s alleged failure to maintain internal cohesion or deliver on its promises to Delhi residents.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh said the Union Budget for 2023-24, presented by the Finance Minister in Parliament, does not have any provision for the country’s farmers, soldiers and youth. File
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Aam Aadmi Party on February 1 questioned Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s claim about doubling of per capita income since 2014, saying it is ‘Amrit Kaal’ for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not for the common people of the country.

Highlighting the achievements of the Modi dispensation so far, the Finance Minister in her budget speech said the government’s efforts since 2014 have ensured for all citizens a better quality of living and a life of dignity.

The per capita income has more than doubled to ₹1.97 lakh, she added.

“Neither did the MSP of crops increase nor did the youth get employment. But this is Amrit Kaal for Modi ji. Nirmala ji is saying per capita income has doubled,” AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, who is also the party’s national spokesperson, said in a series of tweets in Hindi, wondering “whose income” doubled.

The AAP leader said the Union Budget for 2023-24, presented by the Finance Minister in Parliament, does not have any provision for the country’s farmers, soldiers and youth.

“No provision for anyone in the budget. Common people are longing for Amrit [nectar] in the Amrit Kaal,” Mr. Singh said.

Latching on to the Finance Minister’s proposal that 50 additional airports will be revived, the AAP MP took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Modi ji will build 50 new airports. Who will get them?” Mr. Singh said in a tweet.

The AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha termed the budget “most lacklustre” and said it is bereft of “any effort or serious application of mind”.

“It sounded like a budget presented by a minority government with its hands tied rather than a government with a brute majority,” he tweeted.

The Modi Government is focused more on “retaining power than wielding it for the common good,” Mr. Chadha alleged.