Kejriwal adviser saw bureaucrat being hit: Cops

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police on Thursday quoted Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s adviser VK Jain as saying in a statement that he had witnessed two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs “physically assaulting” the Delhi chief secretary Anshu Prakash at the CM’s residence late on Monday night.

Jain later appeared before another magistrate and recorded his statement, according to advocate BS Joon who represented two AAP MLAs arrested in connection with the alleged assault. According to Dependra Pathak, Delhi Police’s

THE TWO AAP MLAS HELD IN CONNECTION WITH THE ALLEGED ASSAULT WERE SENT TO 14DAY CUSTODY

chief spokesperson, Jain’s statement to the police was corroborated by his statement to the magistrate, which is admissible in court.

The AAP, however, alleged that Jain had denied any assault in his initial statement to the police on Wednesday and any change in his statement on Thursday was due to “duress caused by police pressure”. Harendra Kumar Singh, additional deputy commissioner of police (north), said that copy of Wednesday’s statement circulated by AAP was “forged”. AAP leaders alleged the document shared by them was from a police file.

Pathak said Jain, in his statement before the magistrate, said that Prakash’s spectacles had fallen off during the assault. “Jain said he was returning from the washroom when he saw (Amanatullah) Khan and (Prakash) Jarwal physically assaulting the chief secretary. They were asking the chief secretary why he wasn’t working,” said Pathak, paraphrasing the purported statement.

“He told the court that they then pushed him away, heckled him and pressed his jaws while questioning him about his working,” Pathak added.

The chief secretary had approached the police on Tuesday, alleging that he was assaulted by a group of MLAs during a midnight meeting at Kerjriwal’s residence. The police had arrested MLAs Khan and Jarwal on Wednesday. The court had sent them to Tihar for a day.

The court will hear Khan and Jarwal’s bail pleas on Friday. The two MLAs were sent to 14 days’ judicial custody on Thursday. The police, however, is asking the court that the MLAs be handed over to them for further questioning.