Two days after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal was allegedly assaulted by Bibhav Kumar, the former personal secretary of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the latter has filed a counter-complaint against the former Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief.
As per sources, Kumar, in his complaint, alleged forced entry by Maliwal into the chief minister’s residence, breaching security and assaulting the ex-PS. Kumar was last seen with Kejriwal in Lucknow but his location since then is unknown. He was not spotted with the Delhi chief minister during his Mumbai rally on Friday.
The FIR followed by a counter-complaint could make it more challenging for Delhi Police to ascertain the truth.
Culpable Homicide and delay in FIR
The FIR filed by Delhi Police has accused Kumar of culpable homicide under Section 308 of the IPC. “I was slapped, unprovoked, 7-8 times by Bibhav Kumar. I was kicked on my stomach and pelvic region,” Malwal had alleged in her complaint.
Lawyer Shilpi Jain, however, questioned the culpable homicide charge. “The charge will stand in court if medical report proves a grievous, life-threatening injury. Slapping attracts Section 323 which is a bailable offence,” she said.
Jain also pointed out that the delay in filing an FIR and conducting the medical examination of the victim always goes in favour of the defence. Maliwal reached the Civil Lines police station on Monday after making a PCR call alleging assault at the CM’s residence but did not register a formal complaint till Thursday. Her medical examination at AIIMS was carried out on Thursday night — more than 48 hours after the alleged incident.
Supreme Court’s Advocate on Record Prerna Singh said the delay in lodging the FIR and conducting the medical examination could also vitiate the investigation process.
“Although the delay in lodging the FIR is not inordinate, considering the high-profile nature of the case and the prevailing circumstances, the same could pose issues like tampering of evidence and tutoring of witnesses present at the place of occurrence. Since the FIR has been lodged belatedly, the medico legal finding might also vary. Lastly, the delay can also be used by the defence to cast aspersions on the genuineness of the prosecution case by alleging it is an afterthought and to be a coloured version of the incident, thereby corroding the credibility of the version of the prosecutorix,” Singh told News18.
Non-disclosure of full facts
In the FIR, Maliwal has alleged that when she was waiting at Kejriwal’s residence, Kumar entered and asked: “How dare you not follow and accept what we have asked you to?”
Delhi High Court lawyer Soni Singh pointed out that it is not clear in the FIR as to what was the context of such a statement or the motive of Maliwal’s visit to the chief minister’s residence. “No motive or reason is mentioned in the FIR. It does not say why she was attacked or what was she being asked to do which she refused?” Singh said. She also pointed out that in the absence of any witness, this could be construed as a case of the victim’s words versus that of the accused. “At the camp office during elections, it is also noteworthy that no one else is stated to have been present or witness to the entire incident,” Singh told news18.
As per Maliwal, after she called 112 to complain about the assault, the security personnel at Kejriwal’s residence walked in to the place of incidence and asked her to leave “at Bibhav kumar’s behest”. Delhi Police is likely to question the personnel on duty to understand the state in which they saw Maliwal.
CCTV footage
The CCTV footage of the waiting area could hold the key for the Delhi Police. AAP questioned Maliwal on the basis of a video that was leaked to the media on Friday which is believed to be recorded after the alleged assault. It shows Maliwal sitting in the CM’s residence surrounded by security personnel and getting into a verbal altercation. The video, which Maliwal alleged was edited, does not conclusively establish the injuries to the Rajya Sabha MP. Maliwal, however, was captured limping by media cameras outside AIIMS and Kejriwal’s residence on Thursday and Friday.
Maliwal demanded that the full CCTV footage be released to establish the truth. She also posted on X about her apprehensions of CCTV footage being tampered. “I have received information that now these people are tampering with the CCTV of the house,” the former Delhi women’s panel chief posted.
Delhi Police visited the CM’s residence on Friday with Maliwal. Recreating the crime scene and speaking to security personnel on duty have been undertaken to establish the sequence of events. Maliwal reportedly arrived in a cab and left in an auto after the alleged assault. The cab and the auto drivers could be crucial witnesses in the case.
Police is also likely to question AAP MP Sanjay Singh who on Wednesday acknowledged in a press conference that Maliwal was misbehaved with by Bibhav Kumar. “Yesterday, Maliwal had gone to meet Arvind Kejriwal at his residence. While she was waiting to meet him in the drawing room, Bibhav Kumar misbehaved with her. This is a highly condemnable incident. Kejriwal has taken cognisance of it and will take strict action in the incident,” Singh had said on Tuesday.
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