New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Thursday issued notice to Delhi Police on a bail plea filed by Bibhav Kumar, an aide of Aam Aadmi Party boss and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Mr Kumar was arrested in May after allegations of assault, inside Mr Kejriwal’s home, by AAP MP Swati Maliwal.

The next hearing has been set for August 7.

Bibhav Kumar was earlier denied bail by the Delhi High Court and a trial court.

Mr Kumar, in judicial custody till July 16, faces charges of criminal intimidation, assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to disrobe, and attempt to commit culpable homicide.

He also faces charges of “disappearing evidence and giving false information”.

In the brief hearing this morning the court acknowledged “we normally grant bail… we grant bail to murderers and killers”. However, in what may be seen as a bad sign going forward, it also remarked “look at the FIR. She (Ms Maliwal) was crying (during the assault)” and seemed unconvinced by arguments that Bibhav Kumar, if given bail, would not influence witnesses.

“If this kind of person can’t influence who can? Was anyone in the drawing room (of the Chief Minister’s home, where the alleged assault began) to speak against him… he doesn’t seem ashamed, we think,” a bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan remarked.

The court, in a particularly strong observation, also called Mr Kumar a “goon”.

Earlier today senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Mr Kumar, began by questioning the delay by Ms Maliwal in filing her complaint. He referred to Ms Maliwal’s visit to Delhi’s Civil Lines Police Station on May 13 (the day of the alleged assault) and the “strange story” in her FIR.

READ | 500-Page Chargesheet Against Kejriwal’s Aide In Swati Maliwal Case

“Incident was on May 13. FIR was lodged May 16… the story in FIR is strange. She went on the first day to the police station but came back (Ms Maliwal did not file a police complaint or make a statement on that day). Did not lodge FIR. Three days later, FIR was lodged with injuries…”

Mr Singhvi also argued that there are contradictions in Ms Maliwal’s complaints. “Even trial court should have granted bail… there are contradictions about where she says she was hit.”

In her complaint Ms Maliwal said she was hit in the chest, stomach and pelvic areas, and that she felt “absolutely shocked and was screaming for help over and over again”.

“In order to protect myself, I pushed him away with my legs. At that time, he pounced on me, brutally dragged and deliberately pulled my shirt up,” she told the cops.

READ | AAP Says Kejriwal Home Video Exposes Swati Maliwal “Lie”, She Snaps

On the claimed delay, the court pointed out that Ms Maliwal, the former head of the Delhi Commission for Women, had called the police helpline (112) “immediately after the incident”.

Delhi Police later confirmed a call had been placed – from Ms Maliwal’s phone and from inside Mr Kejriwal’s residence. The caller did not, however, reveal their identity, the police said.

“If she is calling 112 immediately after incident, what does it show?” the court shot back.

The court also questioned claims Ms Maliwal should be prosecuted as she had “trespassed” on Mr Kejriwal’s home. “Is it a private residence or office of Chief Minister?” the court asked.

Ms Maliwal has maintained she had an appointment with the Chief Minister on that day.

Mr Singhvi then objected to the court “treating the FIR as gospel” but was told the court is only interested in due processes. “We are not bothered by your internal and other politics.”

READ | Delhi LG Backs Swati Maliwal, AAP Says It Proves Her BJP Link

Bibhav Kumar has denied all allegations by Swati Maliwal, and the AAP has claimed that their senior leader is part of a “conspiracy” orchestrated by its main rival, the Bharatiya Janata Party.

READ | Swati Maliwal Cries In Court, Claims Threat If Bibhav Kumar Gets Bail

Last month, ahead of the trial court’s verdict on his bail appeal, Ms Maliwal claimed there would be threats to her life, and her family, if Mr Kumar were to be released from jail.

The case has sparked a predictable political spat between the AAP and the BJP, which has accused Mr Kejriwal of shielding his aide. The BJP has launched multiple protests on this issue.

The BJP has also demanded that Mr Kejriwal – battling legal problems of his own following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in March – resign, a demand he has rebuffed.

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New Delhi:

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal on Wednesday alleged that party leaders were being pressured to speak against her and do certain things to defame her.

Ms Maliwal took to X and said: “Yesterday, I got a call from a senior leader of the party. He told me how there is a lot of pressure on everyone, they have to speak dirty things against Swati, they have to break her by leaking her personal photos. It is being said that whoever supports her will be expelled from the party.”

Ms Maliwal claimed that someone has been given the duty of doing press conferences and someone else has been given the duty of tweeting.

“Someone’s duty is to call volunteers sitting in America and get something out against me. Some beat reporters close to the accused have the duty of preparing some fake sting operations,” she further said.

“You may raise an army of thousands, I will face it alone because the truth is with me,” she said in her X post.

“I am not angry with them (AAP leaders), the accused is a very powerful man. Even the biggest leaders are afraid of him. No one has the courage to take a stand against him. I don’t even expect anything from anyone. I feel sad that the woman minister of Delhi is smilingly maligning the character of an old female colleague of the party,” she said.

“I have started a fight for my self-respect, I will continue to fight until I get justice. I am completely alone in this fight but I will not give up!” the post concluded.

कल पार्टी के एक बड़े नेता का फोन आया। उसने बताया कैसे सब पर बहुत ज़्यादा दबाव है, स्वाति के ख़िलाफ़ गंदी बातें बोलनी हैं, उसकी पर्सनल फ़ोटोज़ लीक करके उसे तोड़ना है। ये बोला जा रहा है कि जो उसको सपोर्ट करेगा उसको पार्टी से निकाल देंगे। किसी को PC करने की और किसी को ट्वीट्स करने…

— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) May 22, 2024

On May 18, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s close aide Bibhav Kumar was arrested in connection with the assault on Swati Maliwal and produced late at night before a local court which sent him to a five-day police custody.

Delhi Police registered a case against Kumar for molestation and attempted culpable homicide after he allegedly assaulted Ms Maliwal at the Chief Minister’s residence on May 13.

The FIR includes charges under sections 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 341 (wrongful restraint), 354(B) (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 509 (word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code at the Civil Lines police station.

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

New Delhi:

AAP boss Arvind Kejriwal will lead a protest by senior party leaders at the BJP headquarters in Delhi this noon, accusing the party of targeting and arresting AAP leaders one by one.

In a video message yesterday, he said he would march to the BJP headquarters with all his senior leaders where the saffron party could arrest them all at once if they wanted.

प्रधानमंत्री जी, ये एक-एक करके क्या आप हम लोगों को गिरफ़्तार कर रहे हैं? एक साथ सभी को गिरफ़्तार कर लीजिए – CM @ArvindKejriwal l LIVE https://t.co/0LIUQdK9PZ

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) May 18, 2024

“One after the other, they have been putting our leaders in jail… I want to tell the Prime Minister: You are playing this game of arresting people one at a time. Tomorrow, I will go to the BJP headquarters at noon with all my senior leaders, MLAs, and MPs. Jail whoever you want, do it all at once,” he said.

He claimed that his party’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha, and Delhi Ministers Saurabh Bhardwaj and Atishi are also the BJP’s targets. 

The AAP chief, who is out on bail in the liquor policy case, gave the protest call in a video message after his personal secretary Bibhav Kumar was arrested in the Swati Maliwal assault case.

Ms Maliwal, a Rajya Sabha MP, has accused Mr Kumar of assaulting her inside the Chief Minister’s residence, sparking a fierce blame game in the middle of the elections. She has alleged that the official had kicked her in the chest, stomach, and pelvic area, and had brutally “dragged her and pulled her shirt up”.

Mr Kumar was arrested from the Chief Minister’s house yesterday and was sent to five-day police custody.

The issue has led to a political storm with the BJP and the AAP trading charges on how women have been treated by both parties.

The AAP said yesterday Ms Maliwal was “blackmailed” by the BJP to become part of the “conspiracy” against the Chief Minister. It also posted a CCTV footage yesterday that showed the MP walking out of the Chief Minister’s residence, escorted by security personnel.

The Delhi BJP has alleged that the AAP was circulating “edited” videos to tarnish Ms Maliwal’s image. Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva has said that now that Mr Kumar has been arrested, many “dirty pages” of AAP’s politics will become public.

The AAP has been accusing the BJP-led central government of targeting AAP leaders – the latest being the arrest of Bibhav Kumar.

Mr Kejriwal was arrested last March and is out on bail till June 1 while his former deputy Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain remain in jail. Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay was released last month after over six months of jail stay in the liquor policy case.

New Delhi:

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal on Saturday night claimed that the CCTV footage of the May 13 incident where she was allegedly assaulted at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence has “disappeared” and edited videos were being released.

Mr Kejriwal’s aide Bibhav Kumar was picked up at the CM’s residence and arrested in connection with the assault case on Saturday.

“First I was thrashed brutally by Bibhav. He slapped and kicked me. When I freed myself and called 112, he went outside, called security personnel and started making a video. I was shouting and telling the security that Bibhav has thrashed me brutally,” Ms Maliwal claimed.

“That long portion of the video has been edited. Only a 50-second video was released when I was fed up of telling the security.

“Now the phone has been formatted and the full video deleted? The CCTV footage has also disappeared. This is the height of conspiracy,” she said in a post on X in Hindi.

पहले मुझे बेरहमी से Bibhav ने पीटा। थप्पड़ और लातें मारी। जब मैंने ख़ुद को छुड़ा के 112 कॉल करी, तो बाहर जाके सिक्योरिटी बुलायी और वीडियो बनाने लगा। मैं सिक्योरिटी को चीख चीख के बता रही थी की मुझे बहुत बेरहमी से Bibhav ने पीटा है। वो पूरा लंबा हिस्सा वीडियो का edit कर दिया गया।… https://t.co/01rqPlVVde

— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) May 18, 2024

Mr Kumar was on Saturday produced before a magisterial court here, with police contending that his custody was necessary for questioning him about the reason behind the alleged assault on Maliwal.

They said Mr 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.

The police said before being formatted, the data of a mobile phone had to be cloned, and Kumar was required to be taken to Mumbai to retrieve the data.

The presence of the accused was also needed when an expert accesses his mobile-phone, they said.

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

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s aide Bibhav Kumar did not appear before the National Commission for Women (NCW) on Friday in connection with the alleged assault on AAP Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal.

When an NCW team along with Delhi Police again went to serve him notice on Friday, the occupants of the house refused to accept it.

The NCW, in a post, said “Officers of the NCW, along with the ACP of Civil Lines, New Delhi, attempted to serve a Notice of Hearing to Mr. Bibhav Kumar at his residence. When the occupants of the house refused to accept the notice, the officers affixed it on the gate of his residence. The hearing is scheduled for 18th May, 2024, at the NCW Office.”

Officers of the NCW, along with the ACP of Civil Lines, New Delhi, attempted to serve a Notice of Hearing to Mr. Bibhav Kumar at his residence. When the occupants of the house refused to accept the notice, the officers affixed it on the gate of his residence. The hearing is… pic.twitter.com/OeTdx9N69n

— NCW (@NCWIndia) May 17, 2024

The NCW also tagged photos from outside Mr Kumar’s home where they pasted a fresh notice.

Earlier, NCW chief Rekha Sharma said a team of the commission had gone on Thursday as well to Kumar’s residence to serve him a notice, but he was not at home.

“Mr Kumar’s wife refused to receive the notice. My team has gone to his residence again today with police and if he does not appear (before NCW) by tomorrow, then we will go personally to inquire,” Ms Sharma told reporters.

She also said she would meet Ms Maliwal.

“I was telling Swati ji on Twitter (now X) to speak up, but I think she was traumatised because this incident happened at her (party) leader’s house… an MP, who has always raised issues concerning women, was beaten.

“Despite our differences, we have always stood by each other… once she feels a bit better, I will personally meet Swati. I hope she is better now, but I understand it would take time for her to come out of the trauma,” the NCW chief said.

On Mr Kejriwal’s silence on the issue, Ms Sharma said it shows that he does not care about anything.

“This is an indication that he is taking Bibhav with him. Instead of supporting a woman, he is supporting a perpetrator. He distributes freebies in the name of women, but when a woman is being beaten in his house, he turns a blind eye and takes no action against the man responsible,” she said.

“Mr Kejriwal has clearly chosen his side, which is with Bibhav,” she added.

While the police are conducting a probe, Ms Sharma said, the NCW will also send its inquiry team.

On Monday morning, Ms Maliwal went to the Civil Lines police station here and alleged that a member of Kejriwal’s personal staff “assaulted” her at the chief minister’s official residence, police officials said.

The NCW took suo moto cognizance of a media post titled “Ex-DCW chief Swati Maliwal accuses Arvind Kejriwal’s personal secretary of assaulting her” where she claimed that she was brutally assaulted at the chief minister’s residence by Kumar.

The Delhi Police on Thursday registered an FIR in connection with the alleged assault on Ms Maliwal. Mr Kumar has been named as an accused in the case, officials said.

Mr Kumar allegedly kicked and slapped Ms Maliwal multiple times and did not relent even as she screamed for help, according to the FIR.

The details of the alleged assault emerged as Ms Maliwal appeared before a magistrate to record her statement in the case on Friday.

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