Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA was on Thursday arrested by the Delhi Police after a city court ordered the legislator to be sent to judicial custody in a case of rioting and criminal intimidation. According to officials, Akhilesh Tripathi, MLA from Model Town area of the Capital, was sent to two days judicial custody making him the fifth legislator from the AAP to be arrested since the party formed a government here. Tripathi was brought to the court by the police in pursuance of a non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against him by the court earlier for his non appearance. Metropolitan Magistrate Kapil Kumar ordered that the MLA, an accused in the 2013 rioting case, be taken into custody while noting his conduct of not complying with court's order directing him to appear.
According to police officials, an FIR was registered against Tripathi in 2013 for alleged offences under Sections 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting armed with deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 323 (causing simple hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. The others to have been named in the FIR are Inder Vikram Singh, Rahul Kumar, Vikas Mandal, and Kanhaiya Kumar Jha, all of whom are said to be Tripathi's associates.
The case was lodged following allegations that on March 8, 2013, the accused along with other AAP supporters had gathered at Azadpur area in Noth Delhi and entered into a quarrel with complainant Bittu Jha. The accused allegedly assaulted the complainant in which he sustained injuries. In June, former Delhi Law Minister Jitendra Singh Tomar was held in a fake educational degree case followed by the arrest of MLA Somnath Bharti in September on allegations of attempt to murder and domestic violence case filed by his wife. Surinder Singh, AAP MLA from Delhi Cantonment, was arrested in August for allegedly assaulting an NDMC employee and passing casteist remarks. All of them are currently on bail.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, there was a massive chaos in the Delhi assembly on Thursday with Aam Aadmi Party legislators unanimously voting to extend the suspension of BJP lawmaker OP Sharma for his sexist remark about AAP leader Alka Lamba till winter session. "We had asked the BJP to take action against its legislator, but they have conveniently ignored that. On the other hand, the Delhi police has arrested our legislator at their behest,"an AAP legislator said. Toughening their stand against Sharma, AAP lawmakers demanded that Sharma be sent to jail. "We will not budge from our demand. He must be sent to jail and disqualified," Lamba said.
Sexist remark
Meanwhile, on Thursday, there was a massive chaos in the Delhi assembly on Thursday with Aam Aadmi Party legislators unanimously voting to extend the suspension of BJP lawmaker OP Sharma for his sexist remark about AAP leader Alka Lamba till winter session.
