Kejriwal in jail: AAP expresses concern after clash in prison
NEW DELHI: Four inmates at Tihar jail were injured after they were attacked with improvised weapons and a knife by a group of three prisoners outside their jail cells, police said on Thursday.
The clash took place in jail number 3 on Wednesday morning, and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) pointed to the incident to claim that there is a threat to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is currently lodged in jail number 2.
AAP parliamentarian Sanjay Singh also wrote separate letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and lieutenant governor (LG) VK Saxena, claiming that Kejriwal is under round-theclock CCTV surveillance in the prison complex, which amounts to harassment.
The victims in Wednesday’s incident, identified as Deepak Swaroop, Dinesh Kumar, Dheeraj Singh and Durgesh Satpal,
were attacked with shanks that investigators suspect were carved out of a part of a window or a fan in the jail complex — reminiscent of the fatal attack on gangster Sunil Baliyan alias Tillu Tajpuria in May last year. The victims sustained stab wounds to their faces, chest and abdomen, but their condition is stable, police said on Thursday.
The assailants, identified as Dharmendra, Bhupesh and Deepak — police refused to share their last names — have been arrested. They belong to the same group and have criminal records, said investigators. Deputy commissioner of police (west) Vichitra Veer said the two groups fought over supremacy in jail. “The four victims were all taken to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital. They sustained stab wounds and were treated,” the DCP said.
Police said they have lodged a case in the matter, and an inquiry will be carried out by the Delhi prisons department over the security lapse.
When asked about the matter, a Tihar jail official, on condition of anonymity, said prison guards stepped in and stopped the fight. “We do conduct regular checks, but sometimes, inmates improvise shanks out of small metallic or wooden objects… We will conduct an internal inquiry about the knife,” the official said.
Meanwhile, the AAP claimed that Wednesday’s clash proves that there is a threat to Kejriwal’s life.
“There is a threat to Arvind Kejriwal’s life inside jail, and a deep conspiracy is being hatched… If such an incident happens to Arvind Kejriwal, who will be responsible?” Sanjay Singh said.
The AAP leader said that in his letter to the Prime Minister and LG, he flagged the “surveillance” that Kejriwal is being subjected to.
“The treatment being given to Arvind Kejriwal in jail is a violation of the provisions under Article 21 of the Constitution... All the fundamental rights of an elected Chief Minister are being mercilessly violated in the country,” he said.
HT has not seen a copy of the letters to the Prime Minister or the LG.
Tihar officials did not comment on Singh’s allegations.
On May 2, 2023, Tajpuria was stabbed nearly 150 times by four fellow inmates, even as seven Tamil Nadu Special Police (TNSP) personnel — deployed to take care of security — stood by and “did nothing” to stop the attack. After the incident, the seven TNSP men were swiftly removed from duty and were sent back to their home state.