Bibhav Kumar moves HC against arrest in Swati Maliwal case, says it was illegal

NEW DELHI: Bibhav Kumar, a key aide of the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, on Wednesday approached the Delhi high court against his arrest by the police in connection with the alleged assault case involving Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal.

The petition, mentioned before a bench of acting chief justice Manmohan and justice Manmeet PS Arora by Kumar’s lawyer for an urgent hearing, will be taken up on Friday.

The Delhi Police arrested Bibhav Kumar on May 18 amid a court hearing of his request for anticipatory bail. The following day, he was remanded in police custody for five days and later sent to judicial custody. On Monday, the court rejected Kumar’s bail request and on Tuesday, he was remanded in police custody for three more days.

In his petition, Kumar told the high court that he was arrested without being served notice under section 41A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) which mandates police officers to issue notice to a person accused of an offence before arresting someone without a warrant and against the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in Arnesh Kumar v State of Bihar to prevent unnecessary arrests and to ensure that arrests are made only when absolutely necessary.

The case pertains to allegations made by Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal, who claimed that Bihav Kumar slapped her seven to eight times without any provocation at the CM’s residence on May 13, when she went to meet Kejriwal. He slapped her, kicked her in the chest and pelvis, and deliberately pulled up her shirt, Maliwal alleged.

Based on Maliwal’s complaint, police filed an FIR on charges of attempted culpable homicide, assault with intent to disrobe, wrongful restraint, criminal intimidation, and insulting the modesty of a woman.

Kumar, in turn, filed a complaint alleging unauthorised entry and threats by Maliwal, hinting at possible political motives behind the accusations.

The petition in the high court comes two days after a city court rejected Kumar’s request to release him on bail, observing that the allegations made by Maliwal had to be taken at their face value and could not be brushed aside.

“There seems to be no pre-mediation on the part of the victim as if it would have been so, then the FIR would have been registered on the same day,” additional sessions judge (ASJ) Sushil Anuj Tyagi said in his verdict on May 27. The judge also observed that since the investigation was at a nascent stage, the apprehension that the accused could influence witnesses or tamper with the evidence could not be ruled out.

Kumar also sought compensation for his illegal arrest and initiation of departmental action against the police officers who were involved in the decision-making process of arresting Bibhav.