The Delhi High Court is scheduled to announce its decision on Monday regarding a petition filed by Bibhav Kumar, a close aide of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Kumar’s petition challenges his recent arrest by police on charges of assaulting Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma will deliver the verdict at 2:30 pm. This ruling coincides with another bench’s consideration of Kumar’s separate bail plea.
Kumar approached the Delhi High Court shortly after a lower court denied him bail, emphasizing the seriousness of the allegations made by Maliwal. The city court had highlighted the visible injuries documented in medical reports and expressed concerns about potential witness tampering due to the early stage of the investigation.
In his plea before the high court, Kumar argued that his arrest was rushed and violated procedural safeguards outlined in Section 41A of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), as established by the Supreme Court’s guidelines in Arnesh Kumar v State of Bihar. He further sought compensation for wrongful arrest and urged for departmental action against responsible officials.
The Delhi Police, represented by senior advocates Sanjay Jain and Sanjeev Bhandari, contested the maintainability of Kumar’s plea, asserting that his arrest followed due process under Section 41A of the CrPC. They defended their actions, stating that Kumar was informed of the grounds for arrest, and argued that he had legal recourse to challenge the lower court’s decision through a revision petition.
Senior advocate N Hariharan, representing Kumar, countered these arguments, claiming his client’s arrest was unnecessary and conducted with questionable motives, causing undue distress to Kumar and his associates.
The case stems from allegations by Swati Maliwal, accusing Kumar of assaulting her at the Chief Minister’s residence. Charges against Kumar include attempted culpable homicide, assault, criminal intimidation, and insulting a woman’s modesty, based on Maliwal’s complaint filed with the police.
Kumar, in response, filed his own complaint alleging unauthorized entry and threats by Maliwal, suggesting political motivations behind her accusations.
