Alleged Assault On Chief Secretary By AAP MLAs: A Timeline Of Events
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While the news of AAP Government vs Lieutenant General and the bureaucracy has always been in the news since 2015, a recent incident on February 19, seems to have taken the media by storm.

The accusation by Delhi Government’s Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash being “Assaulted and beaten by AAP MLAs “ and the government saying that “the allegations are false and are another attempt to create obstacles in its work” has made the case murkier.


Bureaucrats’ version

Delhi’s Chief Secretary, Anshu Prakash, says that there was a meeting held to discuss the difficulty in releasing specific advertisement regarding the three-year completion of AAP government in Delhi.

The Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had asked Jayadev Sarangi, DIP secretary, to send out advertisements on TV, radio, etc regarding achievements of the AAP government. The first line of this advertisement had CM Kejriwal saying “Humne teen saal mein corruption Kam kar diya.” (we reduced corruption in three years)

The permission was denied by the bureaucrats as they did not possess any data or certification to authenticate the claim. Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC) secretary Shurbir Singh was also asked to do the same. However, Singh said DTTDC’s job was only to make the ad. Publishing/broadcast on media was the task of DIP. After this, Singh went on leave for two to three days.

Late on Monday evening, advisor to chief minister, V K Jain called Prakash to the CM’s residence at midnight. The issue of ads was discussed in the meeting during which Prakash allegedly received “blows and fists on head and temple” allegedly by MLA Amanatullah Khan and another person thereby making his spectacles fall on the floor. Chief Secretary expressed his dissent over the anxiousness on the promotion of 3 years of AAP government. AAP MLA’s blamed the Chief Secretary, Anshu Prakash for not showing interest.


What AAP leaders say

In a mail sent to the police commissioner, AAP Leader Ajay Dutt wrote to the Delhi Police commissioner that “About 2.5 lakh families were deprived of rations last month due to faulty implementation of Aadhaar making the residents reach their MLAs and demand action. The meeting with MLAs was held at CM’s residence during which the Chief secretary refused to answer questions, saying he was not answerable to MLAs and the CM, and that he was accountable only to the L-G. He allegedly used “casteist remarks” against me and some MLAs. He left without answering any questions even as some MLAs went after him to bring him back. The meeting and the argument were not related to TV ads. The entire discussion was on how a large number of families are not able to get ration.”

IAS association came out in support of 1986 batch IAS, Anshu Prakash. Expressing the solidarity with Chief Secretary, the association condemned the attack on Chief secretary and pledged to stand by him.


What has happened now?

A two pages FIR was registered by Delhi Police on the complaint of Anshu Prakash, Chief secretary Delhi Government.

According to the FIR, various sections including 120B (criminal conspiracy), 186 (obstructing a public servant from performing the duty), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 342, 504, 506(B), 120b, 34 and 353 (assault on public servant) of IPC have been slapped against Amanatullah Khan. The Additional DCP North was unavailable to answer.

When The Logical Indian called MLA Amanatullah Khan for his statement, we were told by his assistant that he had been arrested after he surrendered before Delhi Police in Jamia Nagar police station then later taken to Lodhi Colony Police station. Yesterday, MLA Prakash Jaiswal was arrested from his residence at Deoli. Both AAP MLAs were accused of manhandling Delhi Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash. We also approached Satyendra Jain for the statement, where he refused to comment on this issue.

The medical reports released by Aruna Asaf Ali Govt. Hospital confirms injuries, with bruises and swelling on the face of Anshu Parekh.

The medical report also says that the attack happened past midnight. Although, the CCTV footage shows him leaving the Chief Minister’s residence at 23:30 PM.

The attack on Chief Secretary has sparked an outrage among the Bureaucrats, as an attack on the top bureaucrat by MLAs is a severe offence. The authorities are keeping the findings of this high profile case, secret. The Logical Indian believes that an unbiased investigation shall reveal the truth.

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Editor : Poorbita Bagchi

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