AAP's Swati Maliwal presses assault allegations against Arvind Kejriwal's PA

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal, who was allegedly assaulted at the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence by his PA earlier this week, recorded her statement at Tis Hazari court on Friday.

Earlier, on Thursday, Maliwal submitted a statement to Delhi police after four days of silence over the incident, based on which, a case has been filed against Kejriwal’s aide Bibhav Kumar.

According to sources cited by India Today, Maliwal also underwent a medical check-up at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences - AIIMS, Delhi, on Friday that lasted for over three hours.

She has suffered internal injuries to her face, as per a medico-legal case report, sources said.

A case has been lodged under sections 354, 506, 509, and 323, among other IPC sections, for offenses including assault or criminal force on a woman with intent to outrage her modesty, criminal intimidation, word gesture or acts of intent to insult, and assault. 

According to an NDTV report, Maliwal in the FIR has alleged that she was slapped 7-8 times, dragged and kicked in the chest.

Maliwal in her complaint has claimed that on Monday morning she was assaulted by Kumar in the drawing room of Kejriwal's official residence, with the Chief Minister present in the house at the time, the report said.

She has detailed a harrowing account in the FIR, accusing Kumar of slapping her 7-8 times on the face and hitting her chest, stomach, and sensitive parts. "Bibhav came and started abusing and kept slapping without provocation. I made noise and said 'Let me go', but he kept beating me continuously and abusing me in Hindi,” she said in the FIR as reported by NDTV.

Maliwal, the former Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief, took to social media platform X, where she shared her first comment post the incident, saying, “What happened to me was very bad. I have given my statement to the police on the incident that happened to me. I hope that appropriate action will be taken. The last few days have been very difficult for me. I thank those who prayed for me.”

She also appealed to the BJP to not do politics over this incident. The BJP has heavily criticised Kejriwal for his silence, with its spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia even labelling him the "main criminal" due to his apparent inaction during the assault. 

The AAP MP was assaulted by Kumar at the Chief Minister's residence in Delhi's Civil Lines area on Monday. The distressing incident was confirmed by senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Tuesday. He said the incident happened when she was waiting to meet the Chief Minister.

Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women (NCW) has also summoned Kumar for a hearing today. Reportedly, he was spotted with the AAP supremo at Lucknow airport on Thursday, where Kejriwal had gone to attend a joint press conference alongside Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and AAP MP Sanjay Singh. 

While Kejriwal deflected the questions regarding the incident, Singh, addressed the press, acknowledging Kumar's misconduct while criticizing the BJP, demanding accountability for various women's issues under their governance. The Congress, allied with AAP in the opposition INDIA bloc for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, has also called for action against the accused.