Swati Maliwal alleged that she was attacked by Bibhav Kumar at the chief minister’s residence. (File image: News18)
“She knew there was no CCTV! She chose the location so she could conveniently make allegations later,” he said
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s close aide Bibhav Kumar, who is accused of assaulting Swati Maliwal, told Delhi’s Tis Hazari court on Monday that the Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MP had no appointment to meet the CM on May 13, and came to his house with a “premeditated intent of creating trouble”.
Kumar has moved the Delhi court seeking bail in the alleged Swati Maliwal assault case. His counsel, senior advocate N Hariharan, told the court that Maliwal did not inform anyone of her arrival at the Chief Minister’s house.
“She went to the CM residence and called the PA. Bibhav Kumar was not present at that CM House, then she headed towards the CM residence…Maliwal did not say that the CM called her to visit his premises… what she did amounts to trespass. Can someone enter anyone’s residence like this? This is the CM house,” the lawyer said.
He further told the court that Maliwal was asked to wait outside. However, she barged in. “Can being an MP give you a license to do anything? Reading one of the statements from the security, “Sansad ko aap bahaar intezaar karwaoge?…She had some pre-meditated thoughts before coming (to the CMs residence),” Kumar’s lawyer added.
The defence counsel further claimed that Maliwal chose the location of CM’s drawing room because there is no CCTV there.
“She knew there was no CCTV! She chose the location so she could conveniently make allegations later,” he said.
Hariharan also flagged the 3-day delay in filing the complaint. “She was the DCW Chief…she was well aware of her rights. If her rights were violated, then she should have made the complaint immediately,” he said.
The defence also presented Maliwal’s MLC report to the Court and said, “The date of the MLC is on May 16. This incident allegedly took place on May 13. This is an unexplainable gap…We do not know the nature of the wounds…are they recent? Are they three days old?”
Bibhav said he came to know about the FIR against him from the media. “Even after getting to know about this, I sent a letter saying I was willing to join the investigation and cooperate. I also informed them that even I made a complaint about the incident,” he said.
Appearing for the state, Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Atul Srivastava asked will Maliwal, a sitting MP, malign the image of a person who is not even a permanent employee.
“The CM camp office had no register where people who are taking appointments details are mentioned. If Swati was trespassing, why no 100 call was made,’ he asked.
“She is being escorted by the security themselves inside (as per CCTV), then does it mean she barged in? Where is the question of trespass? this was implied permission. She went inside the waiting room with the security. How is she trespassing,” he asked.
Swati Maliwal Assault Case
Kumar, the personal assistant to Kejriwal, allegedly assaulted Maliwal at the chief minister’s official residence on May 13.
He has been under police custody since Saturday. Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Goyal allowed the prosecution’s plea seeking Kumar’s judicial custody for four days.
The Delhi Police had arrested Kumar on May 18.
Explore in-depth coverage of Lok Sabha Election 2024 Voter Turnout, Upcoming Phase, Results Date, Exit Poll And Much More At News18 Website
