The Delhi police has filed a 1300 pages long charge sheet in the matter of assault on chief secretary of Delhi which took place at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s official residence on February 19th. The charge sheet filed by the Delhi Police names Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia as the “kingpins” of a “criminal conspiracy” which led to the assault on chief secretary Anshu Prakash. The charge sheet filed by the Delhi Police in a Delhi court on August 13th blames the duo from the Aam Aadmi Party for calling Prakash to the meeting “deceitfully” and with “criminal intent” to put him under undue pressure. Additional chief metropolitan magistrate Samar Vishal has taken cognizance of the charge sheet and directed Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and 11 other AAP legislators to appear before the court on October 25th. The court is likely to frame charges against the 13 AAP legislators on October 25th when they are present before the court. AAP has time and again denied the allegations levied against its leaders by the chief secretary Anshu Prakash and others.
Delhi chief secretary Anshu Prakash was manhandled by AAP MLAs at the residence of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. According to lawyer Prashant Patel, AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan manhandled the chief secretary. Others present at the meeting joined him as well. The dispute allegedly revolved around the chief secretary’s reluctance to grant more funds to the Delhi government for advertisements to publicize their work.
In his complaint, Anshu Prakash had stated that it was no sudden outburst, rather the assault on him was premeditated. He further went on to state that none of the persons present in the room made any effort to save him. Anshu Prakash said that he was asked to sit between two MLAs. Delhi CM Mr Kejriwal asked him to explain the delay in releasing AAP Government’s 3-year anniversary TV campaign. While he was trying to explain the situation to the Chief Minister, he was subjected to verbal assault. As per Anshu Prakash, one MLA had even threatened that he was to remain confined in the room for the entire night unless he agrees to release the TV campaign,” Anshu Prakash mentions that he can identify the legislator.
The charge sheet filed by the Delhi Police substantiates the allegations levied on the AAP leaders by the chief secretary Anshu Prakash. The timing of the charge sheet will prove to be quite troublesome for Arvind Kejriwal and his fellow leaders who might be gearing up for the upcoming elections in various states. Arvind’s faults will further blemish the name of AAP in the country at a time when him and his party’s reputation already stands on shaky ground. This is one case where a simple apology letter will not work for Kejriwal, he will have to pay for his faults and also the other AAP leaders who joined him in his mistakes.