Arvind Kejriwal, the leader of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Chief Minister of Delhi, has issued a challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to arrest all AAP leaders. He announced on Saturday that he and his party's top leaders will go to the BJP headquarters in Delhi on Sunday at 12 pm. This announcement comes after Kejriwal's former aide, Bibhav Kumar, was arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with the assault case of AAP MP Swati Maliwal. Kejriwal accused the Prime Minister of playing a game of 'Jail ka Khel' with the Aam Aadmi Party.
In a video message shared by Kejriwal on Saturday, he said that the BJP is after AAP and one after another, they are putting AAP leaders behind bars. "They put me, Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain, and Sanjay Singh behind bars. Today, they put my PA in jail. Now they are saying they will put Raghav Chadha, Atishi, and Saurabh Bharadwaj in jail. Maybe our fault is that we built schools and mohalla clinics, and we provided free electricity, but they are unable to do it. I would like to tell the Prime Minister - you are playing this 'jail ka khel'".
"Tomorrow, I am coming to the BJP headquarters with all my top leaders, MLAs, and MPs at 12 noon. You can put in jail whoever you want," he asserted. He further said that the Aam Aadmi Party cannot be crushed, as it is not just a political party but an "ideology". You might be thinking that by putting AAP leaders in jail, you will be able to crush AAP but AAP is an ideology that has touched the hearts of people," he said.
Meanwhile, hitting out at Kejriwal over the Swati Maliwal assault case, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, "Today, the only question that Arvind Kejriwal needs to answer is that first, they do 'Bhrashtachar', then they do 'Durachar', then 'Dushprachar' and now it is 'emotional Attyachar'. Why is Kejriwal silent on the Bibhav Kumar-Swati Maliwal issue? What are the secrets that Bibav Kumar has that Arvind Kejriwal is protecting a criminal like him?".
"The entire incident has taken place in the presence of AAP. It has taken place as dissidents of AAP. It has been done by AAP. It has been done to an AAP leader. It has been confirmed by the AAP leader, but you are saying it is 'Saajish' of the BJP. This kind of obsession with the BJP must stop, and they must answer why women are not safe even in the residence of Kejriwal," Poonawalla added. Meanwhile, security has been enhanced outside BJP headquarters in Delhi in view of the protest by Aam Aadmi Party leaders and workers here. Delhi Traffic Police has also issued an advisory in view of the AAP protest, informing that traffic will remain heavy at DDU Marg, IP Marg, Minto Road and Vikas Marg. It also said that DDU Marg may remain closed for traffic movement between 11.00 am to 2.00 pm and urged commuters to avoid these roads.
The former aide of the AAP supremo emailed the Delhi Police, stating that he was ready to cooperate in the ongoing probe into Maliwal's assault claim while adding that they should also take cognizance of his complaint. Reacting to the arrest of the CM's former aide, the chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW) Rekha Sharma posted from her official X handle, "Delhi CM's aide Bibhav Kumar was arrested from his house. So, the CM was giving shelter to an alleged criminal. Bibhav lodged a counter-complaint with the police on Friday, accusing Maliwal of gaining 'unauthorised entry' into the CM's Civil Lines residence and'verbally abusing' him.
In his complaint, Kejriwal's former PA charged Maliwal with unauthorised entry, verbal abuse, and threats while also claiming the BJP's involvement in the matter. Meanwhile, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Atishi claimed on Saturday that Swati Maliwal filed the assault FIR against Arvind Kejriwal's aide, Bibhav Kumar, at the behest of the ruling BJP. The AAP leader said that the former DCW chief was being used as a 'pawn' and was made to 'hatch this conspiracy' using an old Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) case as leverage.
Maliwal, in her complaint, has alleged that Kejriwal's personal secretary, Bibhav Kumar, "slapped" her "at least seven to eight times" while she "continued screaming" and "brutally dragged" her while "kicking" her in her "chest, stomach and pelvis area." Notably, the Vigilance Department had last month terminated the service of Bibhav Kumar, personal assistant (PA) to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, over a pending criminal case.