Swati Maliwal ‘misbehaviour’ incident: AAP, ex-husband react | What we know so far

A day after Maliwal claimed that she was “assaulted” by one of Kejriwal's personal staff members, Singh said that the CM ordered strict action to be taken.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh admitted on Tuesday that Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal's personal assistant Bibhav Kumar had “misbehaved” with the party's Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal when she visited the chief minister's residence to meet Kejriwal.

The AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal. (PTI)

Sanjay Singh also said the chief minister had ordered strict action to be taken. “Yesterday morning, Swati Maliwal had gone to meet Arvind Kejriwal at his residence. While she was waiting to meet him in the drawing room, Bibhav Kumar came and misbehaved with her. This is a highly condemnable incident. Arvind Kejriwal has taken cognisance of it and will take strict action in the incident. Maliwal has done a lot of work for the country and society. She is a senior party leader. We are with her during this time. The party does not support those (who insult women). The whole incident has been taken seriously by Kejriwal,” he said.

Soon after Sanjay Singh's statement, several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders urged the Delhi Police to take action on Singh's statement, insisting that an FIR should be filed and those responsible should be dealt with.

What did the Delhi Police say?

The Delhi Police has said it was still awaiting a formal complaint by Swati Maliwal, emphasising that it has not closed the daily diary (DD) entry. Although Swati Maliwal visited the police station on Monday, expressing her intent to file a case, she did not return.

Former chief of the Delhi Commission For Women (DCW) Swati Maliwal visited the Civil Lines Police Station. It claimed that a member of Kejriwal's personal staff "assaulted" her at the CM's residence, according to police officials.

NCW chief's comments

National Commission for Women (NCW) chief Rekha Sharma said in a post on X, “I am worried about the safety of @SwatiJaiHind. Woman who raises voice fro orher's, what pressure is she under that she is unable to come forward and complaint to Police. Be brave Swati #speakup.”

Swati Maliwal's ex-husband

Swati Maliwal's ex-husband Naveen Jaihind said her life was under threat.

In a video on X, he said, “I am Naveen Jaihind. Since yesterday, I have been getting a lot of calls from journalists regarding what happened with Swati Maliwal at the Delhi Chief Minister's residence. First, I want to say that I am divorced and have not been in contact with her for the last four years. Second, I want to tell you that whatever has happened with Swati was planned and now she has been threatened and anything can happen to her.”

“The man who has assaulted Swati does not have the guts to even raise his voice but he did that on the instructions of someone. I was just listening to Sanjay Singh's press conference and wanted to tell him that he should stop acting, as he knows everything. Swati should stand up and speak for herself. What are you afraid of? Speak up, we are all with you. Her life is under threat,” he added.

BJP leaders on the issue

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said, “Sanjay Singh's statement that the party will take action in the matter is quite embarrassing. Sanjay Singh claims that Arvind Kejriwal was not there at the time, but the BJP knows through sources that this entire incident occurred at the behest of and in front of Arvind Kejriwal.”

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the Vice President should take suo motu cognisance of the matter.

He said, “There was an earlier allegation that a Delhi chief secretary was beaten by Kejriwal. Yesterday, he also thrashed a Rajya Sabha MP. I think the vice president, who is also the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, should take suo motu cognisance of how a chief minister can beat a Rajya Sabha MP.”

Senior BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan attacked Kejriwal while campaigning for BJP candidate for the North East Delhi constituency Manoj Tiwari. He said, “Such humiliation and misbehaviour with a sister in Chief Minister's house, will you accept it? Mahabharat started just because Draupadi was humiliated.”

BJP leader Shazia Ilmi said to ANI, “Why is AAP quiet on such a serious issue? Why did Swati Maliwal make such an allegation? She even went to Police station. Was she trying to threaten somebody or was that allegation true? She is the DCW chief and Rajya Sabha MP, why is she making such an allegation? People need to know the reality of Arvind Kejriwal and the people around him.”