In the Swati Maliwal assault case, the Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to Bibhav Kumar, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s personal assistant. Judges Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, who made up the bench, decided that the prosecution’s request to call over 51 witnesses would cause a delay in the trial’s end.
The bench noted that Kumar had been in prison for more than 100 days and that the chargesheet had already been submitted, lowering the possibility of compromising the investigation. “This is a case for bail,” Justice Bhuyan observed, addressing Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, who opposed bail.
The ASG claimed that witnesses were under Kumar’s control and expressed worries about altered CCTV video. Senior Advocate Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Kumar, argued that the injuries sustained were minimal and that invoking Section 308 of the IPC was unwarranted. Singhvi further noted that the witnesses were Delhi police officers, lowering the danger of intimidation.
The court set various bail conditions, including preventing Kumar from returning to the CM’s office or visiting Kejriwal’s home until private witnesses were examined. The trial court was ordered to expedite witness examination within three months. The trial court can impose additional conditions on bail.