On Wednesday, AAP MP Swati Maliwal condemned her party for dismissing her assault charges against Bibhav Kumar, an adviser to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, as unfounded. She alleged that AAP buckled under pressure from a “goon” and is now questioning her character. Maliwal expressed anger with the tremendous pressure on party members to “speak dirty things against” her.
Maliwal accused Kejriwal’s former personal secretary, Bibhav Kumar, of beating her at the Chief Minister’s residence. She described a recent phone contact from a senior party leader outlining intensive efforts to sabotage her. According to Maliwal, the leader indicated there was pressure to speak negatively about her, crush her spirit by revealing personal images, and expel anyone who supported her from the party. Duties were allocated to various people, including organizing news conferences, tweeting against her, contacting volunteers in America to gather information about her, and having beat reporters create fake sting operations.
Maliwal reiterated that she will fight alone against this onslaught because she believes the truth is on her side. She was disappointed that even the most renowned leaders were reluctant to approach the accused, whom she referred to as a powerful man. She remarked that even Delhi’s female ministers smiled while disparaging her character. Despite feeling alienated, Maliwal said that she had begun a fight for her self-respect and would continue until justice was served. She decided not to give up, regardless of how alone she felt in this battle.
