Kejriwal Might Face Conspiracy Charge Over Chief Sec Assault Row

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/@aimthemovie)

Delhi Police is likely to charge Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia with conspiracy in the alleged assault of Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash by two AAP MLAs, said police sources.

Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) slammed the case as politically motivated.

"The Prime Minister is insulting the people of Delhi by imposing fake cases against their elected representatives. But we will continue our work for Delhi despite all the odds. You continue your duty and we will continue ours," Kejriwal tweeted.

According to police sources, the chargesheet will "most probably" be filed at Tis Hazari Court here in the first week of July.

Terming it a politically motivated case, the AAP said that this is a conspiracy to defame the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister.

"Delhi Police has been planting all kinds of fictitious stories since the last four months. The truth is that a conspiracy was hatched by the police and Prakash to defame Kejriwal and Sisodia in a bid to destabilise the elected state government," AAP chief spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj told the media.

Prakash, who had gone to attend a late night “emergency” meeting called by Kejriwal at his residence in Civil Lines on 19 February, had alleged that he was assaulted by AAP MLAs Amanutullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal.

The timing of the CCTV cameras installed at Kejriwal's residence was tampered, according to the police. The two MLAs were arrested after a day and were later released on bail.

Kejriwal and Sisodia were interrogated separately by police last month for calling the meeting late in the night and for the “tampering” with the cameras.

Bhardwaj, however, claimed that no incidence of violence took place on the night of 19 February at the Delhi Chief Minister's residence and that "CCTV tampering allegation has proved to be false".

"Delhi Police has been unable to answer a simple question that if the Chief Secretary was assaulted, then how was it that in the CCTV footage he was seen walking normally out of the Chief Minister's residence,” Bhardwaj said.

The Chief Secretary – a person with close links with senior BJP leaders - instead of going to the police, went straight to Raj Niwas at 12.30 p.m., where the Lt Governor, along with Delhi Police Commissioner, was already waiting for him to implicate the Chief Minister and a dozen AAP MLAs in a fabricated case.

AAP chief spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj

He went on to say that it is a matter of shame for the Delhi Police as it allowed itself to be a "spineless political arm of the Central government".

"AAP won't be cowed down by such repressive measures and will strongly contest the bogus police chargesheet as and when it will be filed in the court.

"The party will expose the conspiracy against itself before the people," he said.