NEW DELHI: Delhi Police on Tuesday filed a 500-page chargesheet at a Tis Hazari court against Bibhav Kumar, an aide of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. Kumar has been accused of assaulting Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal at the CM’s residence on May 13 and is currently in judicial custody.
![Bibhav Kumar charged with assaulting MP Swati Maliwal and tampering with evidence Bibhav Kumar charged with assaulting MP Swati Maliwal and tampering with evidence](https://i0.wp.com/www.realtimeindia.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/1721183044_398_Swati-Maliwal-assault-case-Chargesheet-against-CM-Arvind-Kejriwals-aide.jpg?w=600&ssl=1)
Bibhav Kumar charged with assaulting MP Swati Maliwal and tampering with evidence
The chargesheet was filed before the court of metropolitan magistrate Gaurav Goyal, who also extended Kumar’s judicial custody till July 30.
Kumar appeared in court via video conferencing, and the court instructed police to ensure his physical presence on July 30, when a decision will be made regarding taking cognisance of the chargesheet. The chargesheet includes statements from 50 individuals who have been listed as witnesses.
Bibhav charged with destroying evidence and cloning his phone
The charges against Kumar encompass various sections of Indian Penal Code 1860, including wrongful restraint (Section 341), assault or criminal force with intent to outrage a woman’s modesty (Section 354), assault or use of criminal force with intent to disrobe a woman (Section 354B), criminal intimidation (Section 506), insult to a woman’s modesty (Section 509), attempt to commit culpable homicide (Section 308) and causing destruction of evidence or providing false information (Section 201).
The chargesheet includes statements from Maliwal, Kumar, CM’s security staff and other individuals. The allegations against Kumar include destroying evidence by formatting his phone, refusing to share his phone’s password, cloning his phone, transferring data to another device and tampering with CCTV footage from the CM’s residence and his own house.
On July 12, Delhi high court had denied bail to Kumar, citing his considerable power and potential to influence witnesses in the case. Kumar was arrested on May 18 following a complaint by Maliwal alleging assault and a case was registered against Kumar under various sections of IPC.
A Delhi court had dismissed Kumar’s second bail plea on June 7, emphasising the grave and serious nature of the allegations against him.
Kumar’s first regular bail plea was also rejected by the trial court on May 27, stating that the allegations raised by Maliwal cannot be dismissed and that no grounds for bail were established.