Bibhav Kumar, Kejriwal's former aide, on the left and AAP's Swati Maliwal on the right, can be seen here
Credit: X/@jitenderkhalsa and PTI Photos
New Delhi: The National Commission for Women, taking suo motu cognisance of the case of assault on AAP Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal, has summoned accused Bibhav Kumar to present himself in front of the Commission on Friday.
Additionally, the Delhi Police had dispatched a team to Maliwal’s house on Thursday. No case has yet been registered in the matter.
The Commission said that it took cognisance of the matter through a media post. “DCW chief Swati Maliwal accuses Arvind Kejriwal’s personal secretary of assaulting her”. “The post reported that Ms. Swati Maliwal, RS MP and former DCW chief, has alleged that the Private Secretary of Chief Minister of Delhi had brutally assaulted her at the Chief Minister’s residence.
In view of the above, the Commission has scheduled a hearing in this matter on May 17, 2024, at 11 AM. All concerned parties are required to appear before the Commission in person,” the NCW said in a release.
Later in the day, a team of the Delhi Police reached Maliwal’s residence to investigate the case. Senior officials including DCP North and an ACP were present at her residence for more than three hours.
In Lucknow, in a joint press conference of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, senior AAP leader Sanjau Singh said that political games are being played on the matter.
“When women wrestlers were sitting at Jantar Mantar, seeking justice, Swati Maliwal had gone there as the DCW chief in the evening to express solidarity, but the police dragged her and beat her… The AAP is our family. The party has made its position clear… Don’t play political games on this issue,” Singh said.
He also spoke of the wife of the Indian Army soldier who was paraded naked in Manipur last year, the victims of the JD(S) Lok Sabha candidate Prajwal Revanna, and the Kuldeep Sengar case in Hathras. “The PM remains silent,” he said.
On Monday morning, Maliwal went to the Civil Lines police station accusing a member of Kejriwal’s personal staff of “assaulting” her at the chief minister’s official residence. Maliwal had also made two calls to the police PCR, identifying herself and accusing the Chief Minister’s PA Bibhav of assaulting her. Maliwal has not filed a formal complaint and she is yet to make any public statement on the matter. Addressing the matter, Singh said that the incident was “highly condemnable”.