New Delhi: The Delhi Police have added a charge under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for “causing disappearance of evidence and giving false information” against Bibhav Kumar, an aide to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in connection with the assault case involving AAP MP Swati Maliwal, an official stated on Monday.
Kumar is accused of assaulting Maliwal at the chief minister’s official residence on May 13.
The official mentioned that Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of an offence, or giving false information to screen an offender) of the IPC has been added to the case.
Section 201 provides for imprisonment of one-sixth of the punishment prescribed for the most serious offence in the crime, the official added.
The FIR against Kumar was registered on May 16 under various provisions of the IPC, including those related to criminal intimidation, assault or use of criminal force with intent to disrobe a woman, and attempted culpable homicide.
Maliwal, a former chief of the Delhi Commission for Women, alleged that Kumar attacked her with full force, slapping and kicking her when she visited Kejriwal.
According to a senior police officer, Kumar’s mobile phone was found to have been formatted when he was arrested at Kejriwal’s residence on May 18. He had been in Mumbai before returning to Delhi.
The police took Kumar to Mumbai twice. He is suspected of formatting his mobile phone in Mumbai but did not disclose the location or the person with whom he shared the data, the officer said.
During his police custody, Kumar did not cooperate with the investigation, the officer added.
Another police officer reported that three CCTV DVRs (digital video recorders) were collected from Kejriwal’s residence — two from cameras installed at the entrance and one from outside the drawing room. The DVRs were sent to the forensic science laboratory on suspicion of tampering, and the reports are awaited.
Kumar was arrested on May 18 and is currently held in Tihar Jail.
