Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Swati Maliwal hit out at the party on Friday alleging that an attempt was made to portray her as a “villain” and Delhi Chief Minister’s aide Bibhav Kumar as a “hero” after she made assault allegations against him.
“I am very hurt and saddened by the behaviour of Arvind Kejriwal. I and my entire family are in trauma because I have been working since 2006. I have been working since I had no position or prestige. There were no governments in the two states then. I have been working since then, with passion, selflessness, and honesty,” AAP leader Maliwal told ANI.
Maliwal alleged victim-shaming by the party adding that her character was “maligned” and she was left “alone in the entire battle.”
“But the truth is that when I was being beaten badly….in Arvind Kejriwal’s drawing room, he did not come. No one came to save me. And an out-of-court trial was conducted in which I was declared guilty. To date, he neither rang me nor came to meet me and he has not helped me anywhere. The entire party and he are standing with Bibhav Kumar at this time. So in such a situation, I am very sad because Arvind Kejriwal, who expresses his views on every issue, did not consider it necessary to support me on my issue, to take a stand for me, or to talk about my issue,” Maliwal said.
#WATCH | Swati Maliwal assault case | AAP MP Swati Maliwal says, "Bibhav Kumar beat me up very badly in Arvind Kejriwal's drawing room. As soon as I filed a complaint against him, he did the same. The entire party's leadership and resources were used against me. Every day I was… pic.twitter.com/jNalOwpo0H
— ANI (@ANI) May 31, 2024
“Bibhav Kumar beat me up very badly in Arvind Kejriwal’s drawing room, and as soon as I filed a complaint in this matter, the entire party’s resources and leadership were used against me. Every day I was victim-shamed, my character was maligned,” Maliwal told ANI on Friday.
She further pointed out that Bibhav Kumar accompanied Kejriwal during his visit to Lucknow and Amritsar for campaigning in Lok Sabha polls.
“As soon as Delhi Police arrested Bibhav Kumar, Arvind Kejriwal himself and the entire party took to the streets to protest against his arrest. An attempt was made to portray that he is the hero and I am the villain,” the AAP MP said.
Maliwal expressed confidence in the judiciary in the matter and said, “Today I have been left alone in this entire battle just because I have filed a complaint against Bibhav Kumar. I am fighting this battle alone and I will continue to fight till the end. Because I know that what I have said is the complete truth. In this entire battle, my only hope is from the court for justice.”
Earlier in the day, Delhi’s Tiz Hazari court remanded Bibhav Kumar in 14-day judicial custody in connection with the alleged assault on Maliwal.
Kumar was produced before the court after the three-day police custody granted on May 28 ended on Friday. He was arrested by the Delhi Police on May 18, in connection with the case.
Maliwal lodged a complaint with the Delhi police against Bibhav Kumar on May 14, a day after the alleged assault took place. A day later, Bibhav Kumar lodged a counter-complaint with the police, accusing Maliwal of gaining ‘unauthorised entry’ into the CM’s Civil Lines residence and ‘verbally abusing’ him.
A case was filed against Bibhav Kumar and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to investigate the case based on Maliwal’s complaint. Bibhav was arrested by the Delhi Police on May 19.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
