New Delhi: Bibhav Kumar, a close aide to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, filed a petition in the Delhi High Court on Wednesday challenging his arrest in connection with the alleged assault on AAP MP Swati Maliwal at the CM’s residence earlier this month.
In his petition, Kumar requested the court to declare his arrest as illegal, citing a violation of Section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure and asserting that it contravened legal mandates. He also sought “appropriate compensation” for what he termed an unlawful arrest, and urged for departmental action against officials involved in the decision-making process leading to his arrest.
Earlier this week, Kumar’s bail plea was denied by a sessions court, which noted no evidence of pre-meditation on Maliwal’s part in filing the FIR and upheld the seriousness of her allegations.
Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal accused Kumar of assaulting her at the official residence of the Chief Minister on May 13. Kumar was subsequently arrested on May 18 and remanded to five-day police custody the same day by a magisterial court, which deemed his anticipatory bail plea moot following his arrest. He was later transferred to judicial custody for four days.
The FIR against Kumar, lodged on May 16, includes charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, such as criminal intimidation, assault on a woman with intent to disrobe, and attempt to commit culpable homicide.
