CS case: HC denies bail to MLA

New Delhi: The Delhi high court on  Thursday sought a response from the Delhi police on a bail plea filed by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Prakash Jarwal, who was arrested for allegedly assaulting Delhi chief secretary Anshu Prakash.

Justice Mukta Gupta issued a notice to the police and directed them to file a status report in the matter by March 7.

Mr Jarwal on Wednesday moved the high court after a sessions court denied to grant him bail, saying he had “openly violated the dignity” of a 56-year-old public servant.

Senior advocate Rebecca M. John, appearing for the MLA, told the court that the probe in the matter is over and no further custody was required.

“The learned sessions court judge has failed to appreciate that the FIR was registered at 1pm the next day (after the alleged attack). “Therefore, the FIR is a clear afterthought and motivated to falsely implicate the petitioner and others,” she submitted before the court.

Ms John also told the court that the police presented a wrong picture about the previous involvements of the MLA in other cases as those matters were strictly political in nature, which have either been quashed or not yet proven to be true.

In his bail plea, the Deoli legislator pointed out that the sessions court had made a general remark, while denying him bail that he may influence the witness.

“However, she (the judge) has failed to consider the fact that the complainant (Mr Prakash) too is a powerful bureaucrat and is an extremely influential person himself with access to the highest levels of government and bureaucracy,” it said.

The counsel for the AAP MLA sought his release, saying he is a sitting MLA and not a hardened criminal. Mr Jarwal, who was arrested on February 20, is currently undergoing 14-day judicial custody.

In the same case, another MLA Amanatullah Khan was also arrested in connection with the alleged assault on the chief secretary during a meeting at chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence on the night of February 19.

While refusing to grant bail to Mr Jarwal, the court had said the situation couldn’t be more alarming when lawmakers don’t respect the rule of law.

While dismissing the MLA’s plea, the court noted that Mr Prakash’s allegations were confirmed by his medical report and the statement of Mr Kejriwal’s adviser V. K. Jain, who had claimed that he saw the MLAs assaulting Mr Prakash.

Seeking bail before the sessions court, Ms John had argued that the MLA was a young politician and had got married recently on February 6 so he be granted the relief.