Delhi chief secretary ‘assault’ case: AAP MLAs Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal arrested

AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan was produced at Tis Hazari Court on Wednesday. He has been accused of assaulting Delhi Chief Secretary during a late-night meeting at the Chief Minister’s residence. (Photo by Praveen Khanna)

Special CP Dependra Pathak said, “The law will take its own course. Further investigations are on.” Both arrested MLAs were taken to Darya Ganj police station, and from there to a court which sent them to judicial custody for a day. Jain was summoned to the police station for questioning since, according to Prakash’s complaint, he was the one who called him to the CM’s residence on February 19. Additional DCP (North) Harendra K Singh confirmed that Jain was at the meeting where the alleged assault took place. “We asked him a few questions and later allowed him to go,” said Singh, adding that “more people might be called for questioning during investigation”. Apart from the CM and his deputy, nine MLAs were present at the meeting, police said.

In the FIR, Prakash said that once he arrived for the meeting, he was made to sit between Khan and Jarwal, and was subsequently assaulted. Police said they will collect CCTV footage from the CM’s residence to corroborate the sequence of events. Sources said the meeting ended in six-seven minutes owing to the alleged assault.

According to the medicolegal certificate (MLC) following Prakash’s check-up at the Aruna Asaf Ali Government Hospital, roughly 21 hours after the alleged incident, Prakash complained of “painful neck movements, pain behind both ears and pain below the right eye”. The report also states that Prakash was found to have “tenderness and mild swelling behind both ears” and “bruise over lower lip”. “No other fresh visible external injury seen at the time of examination,” the MLC states. Reacting to the arrests, AAP claimed Khan and Jarwal were being targetted because they were Muslim and Dalit respectively.