A Delhi court on Tuesday granted three weeks of interim bail to Hindutva influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj in a case related to the alleged assault of the father of a student activist during a protest at Jantar Mantar.
Additional Sessions Judge Saurabh Pratap Singh Laler of Patiala House Courts passed the order. A detailed order is yet to be released.
Bhardwaj had sought regular bail, but the court granted him interim bail for three weeks.
Case Linked to Jantar Mantar Protest
The case relates to an alleged assault on Sanjay Kumar, the father of student activist Nishu Aazad, during a protest at Jantar Mantar against alleged irregularities in competitive examinations.
Bhardwaj came under scrutiny after a video purportedly showing him talking about the incident was widely circulated online. In the video, he allegedly claimed that he had “cracked the skull” of Kumar and referred to his political connections.
Bhardwaj has denied wrongdoing and claimed that he acted in self defence. He has alleged that he could have been “lynched by the mob or killed” had he not defended himself.
Police Added SC ST Act Provisions
Bhardwaj was initially booked under Sections 115(2) and 126(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, relating to voluntarily causing hurt and wrongful restraint.
Following protests by members of the Cockroach Janta Party outside Parliament Street police station on September 4, police added provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and criminal intimidation to the case.
A separate POCSO case has also been registered against Bhardwaj, according to the reports.
The court was informed that Bhardwaj was arrested in connection with the SC/ST Act case and not the POCSO case.
Defence Claims Arrest Was Politically Motivated
During Monday’s hearing, Bhardwaj’s lawyer, Umesh Sharma, argued that his client’s arrest was politically motivated.
The defence also claimed that a video showed Kumar attacking Bhardwaj first.
“Police ko wo video nazar nahi aa raha… Is video m clearly dikhai de raha hai ki complainant is mujhpe attack kiya hai aur main gir gaya hu,” Sharma told the court.
Sharma also said Bhardwaj had earlier received a police notice to appear for questioning on June 27 and appeared before investigators on June 29, after which he was allowed to leave.
He alleged that Bhardwaj was arrested later following “political developments” and that a POCSO case was registered after his arrest.
Complainant Opposes Bail
Advocate Swati Khanna, representing the complainant, opposed the bail plea.
She alleged that Bhardwaj had used casteist slurs against the complainant and claimed that he had admitted in a video that he was responsible for the assault.
Delhi Police told the court that the original complaint did not mention any casteist slur. According to the police, the allegation was included in a subsequent statement, following which provisions of the SC/ST Act were added.
Bhardwaj Was Arrested in Uttar Pradesh
Bhardwaj was detained in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr on September 5, shortly after the CJP protest demanding his arrest.
He has remained in judicial custody since then.
The Delhi High Court had earlier rejected his habeas corpus plea challenging his arrest.
The court had also decided to conduct in camera proceedings after being informed that two FIRs had been registered against Bhardwaj under the SC/ST Act and POCSO Act.
The detailed reasons for Tuesday’s interim bail order are awaited.
