A Delhi court yesterday sent two Aam Aadmi Party legislators, who allegedly assaulted Delhi Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash, to judicial custody till today.
Metropolitan Magistrate Shefali Barnala Tandon refused a Delhi Police request for police custody of Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal and said their bail pleas will be taken up today.
On Tuesday, the chief secretary alleged that he was beaten up by Khan and another MLA (member of the legislative assembly) in the presence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
The incident allegedly took place on Monday night at the chief minister’s home where Prakash had been called for a meeting.
While Jarwal was arrested on Tuesday night, Khan surrendered at a police station yesterday afternoon.
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal’s adviser V K Jain was questioned by police and let off.
The alleged assault on the top bureaucrat triggered a political storm, with the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanding Kejriwal’s resignation and the Congress seeking his apology.
The AAP hit back by accusing the chief secretary of making false allegations and said he was working at the “behest of the BJP”.
The federal Home Ministry sought a report from Lt Governor Anil Baijal as Home Minister Rajnath Singh said he was “deeply pained” by the development. The L-G has since submitted a report on the issue to the ministry.
Members of an organisation representing bureaucrats said they will not meet or talk by phone with the chief minister or his ministers or party MLAs till Kejriwal apologised and took action.
On Tuesday afternoon, Delhi Environment Minister Imran Hussain was manhandled inside the Delhi Secretariat by a crowd protesting against the alleged assault.
Hussain’s assistant personal secretary was beaten up, according to multiple video clips from the Secretariat.
The crowd reportedly consisted of Delhi government employees protesting against the alleged assault on Prakash.
AAP leader Ashish Khetan alleged that he too was manhandled by the same crowd, and claimed that the Delhi Police did not try to intervene.
Khetan said the Secretariat was supposed to be a “high-security zone” and alleged that the Delhi Police did not do anything when the mob tried to attack him and later Hussain.
Yesterday, Hussain met Lt Governor Anil Baijal, after which sources told IANS that Baijal said he would talk to Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik about the issue.
A separate FIR (first information report) has been registered based on Hussain’s complaint.
The Congress called the alleged assault on the chief secretary a “planned strategy” of the ruling party and demanded Kejriwal apologise to the bureaucrat.
“The case of assault on the chief secretary is a very shameful act and the situation of administrative paralysis is very dangerous for the national capital,” Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken said after meeting Baijal along with three-time Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit.
“We have met the L-G and demanded security to the officials so that they can work with dignity and there is no political pressure on them,” Maken said.
He alleged the Kejriwal government has “failed on all fronts in the last three years. And thus it was a fully planned strategy of the AAP to divert the attention of people from their failures”.
Maken also said that “under Dikshit’s government there were a number of times when MLAs and officials differed on several issues”.
“But she has directed all the MLAs to maintain the dignity of the bureaucrats. And for 15 years, we worked with all these officials and were able to win six elections.
“When we can get the work done from these officials with dignity, why cannot the Kejriwal government?” Maken asked.
In protest against the assault, top bureaucrats in Haryana wore black badges to a meeting with Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
At least 46 top most in the Haryana government wore the black badges.
Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan being taken to the Tees Hazari Court in New Delhi yesterday.
