In a video which surfaced recently, an Aam Aadmi Party’s volunteer was seen thrashing a man mercilessly in outer Delhi’s Kirari area. A policeman can be seen standing by the side, watching helplessly as Saurabh Jha, the aide of Kirari’s AAP MLA Rituraj Govind, uses a police baton to beat him.
The viral video of the incident which took place on November 14, shows a shirtless man sitting on the street and crying in pain as the MLA’s associate is continuously attacking him allegedly with a police lathi. A policeman can be seen requesting the worker to stop while two others are standing in a corner.
The police said Vikas, the man who was beaten up, has several cases against him. On November 14, during Chatt Puja, he and his friends molested a woman and were beaten up by locals, the police said.
On seeing the police, Vikas and his friends ran away from the spot. As they chased him, a mob of 40 to 50 people reportedly caught Vikas and thrashed him, the police said. He was later rescued and arrested by the police.
The MLA came out and defended his aide, saying that he was agitated because they had allegedly misbehaved with his sister as well. While the five suspects, including a juvenile, were booked on molestation charges and sent to judicial custody, the police haven’t registered a case against anyone in the mob.
The DCP (outer) Seju P Kuruvilla, said that they had received a phone call informing them about five men creating a ruckus at the Chhath Puja in Kirari’s Hind Vihar Colony. These included the two siblings and their three friends, including a juvenile. “They were caught by the public for molesting a woman and thrashed before we reached the spot,” said DCP.
The subsequent probe revealed that minutes earlier they had allegedly molested another 17-year-old girl and tried to kidnap her, said the officer.
According to Vikas’ family, Saurabh Jha had personal issues with them due to which he attacked Vikas. Vikas’ brother was named in a gang-rape case two years ago. According to their family, their mother had approached Saurabh Jha to help her son get through the case. The family alleges that Jha demanded Rs. 25 lakh to “settle” the case. The family said he was furious when they refused to pay up and hence, thrashed Vikas.
No action has been taken on the family’s complaint against Saurabh Jha.
Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari said, “The question arises that even if the men who were assaulted are criminals, who have given AAP leaders rights to take law in their own hands? Do the AAP leaders treat themselves to be the guardians of law?”
Tiwari cited personal enmity between two sides as the reason for this attack. However, the AAP MLA dismissed the allegations that his associate had any of personal enmity with the men who were attacked.