Rajnath Singh slams Arvind Kejriwal on Swati Maliwal assault: 'Lacked any shame, should be shown the door'

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday chided Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over the alleged assault on Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal. Maliwal had claimed in a PCR call that she was allegedly assaulted by Kejriwal's personal secretary Bibhav Kumar at the chief minister's official residence. She later filed an FIR, following which Bibhav Kumar was arrested. 

Commenting on the alleged assault on Maliwal, Singh said that a woman was beaten up at the Sheesh Mahal, the official residence of Arvind Kejriwal, but he has not said even a word yet on the assault. He also said that Kejriwal's personal secretary accused of allegedly assaulting Swati Maliwal was seen with the Delhi CM in Lucknow. 

"A woman was beaten in the sheesh mahal (a reference to Delhi CM's official residence) and Kejriwal has not uttered even one word about it. His PA who is accused was even seen with him in Lucknow from where I am contesting the elections," Singh said at a roadshow held in support of BJP's North West Delhi Lok Sabha candidate Yogendra Chandolia. 

Rajnath Singh, who is eyeing a third term as Lok Sabha MP from Lucknow, also said that Arvind Kejriwal lacks any shame and should be shown the doors. "The Delhi chief minister lacked any shame and should be shown the doors," Singh lashed out at Kejriwal. 

Singh, however, was not the only senior BJP leader to slam Arvind Kejriwal on the alleged assault against Swati Maliwal.

The saffron party's national president JP Nadda also attacked Kejriwal over the allegations and asked why the "champion of Nirbhaya" observed radio silence now. In an exclusive conversation with Business Today's Rahul Kanwal, Nadda also dismissed allegations that Maliwal is a "BJP agent". 

"This is entirely an internal AAP matter," JP Nadda said. He also made it clear that the BJP does not have any plans to induct Swati Maliwal as of now. 

Meanwhile, Delhi L-G VK Saxena on Tuesday said in an official statement that the Delhi chief minister's "deafening silence" on the case "speaks volumes about his stance on the safety of women." The L-G further said that the proceedings related to the case would soon reach its logical conclusion. 

Saxena further claimed that Swati Maliwal called him "out of sheer anguish" and described her ordeal and the intimidation and shaming that she has been subjected to by her AAP colleagues. The L-G said: "She also expressed concern over the reported tampering of evidence and coercion."

He further said that the incident was confirmed by her fellow Rajya Sabha MP, referring to Sanjay Singh. While confirming the incident against Swati Maliwal in a press conference, Singh assured that the CM would take strict action against the culprit. 

"Subsequently, a total U-turn was done in the matter, apparently at the behest of the highest functionary. This too is inexplicable and baffling. I would have expected that at least for the sake of propriety, my CM would have come clean, rather being evasive and dodgy," the L-G said.