CS row: MLA questioned, more AAP legislators likely to be summoned

AAP MLA Rajesh Rishi was today questioned for nearly two hours by the police in connection with the alleged assault on Delhi government's Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash. Two Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Nitin Tyagi and Rajesh Rishi were summoned by police for questioning at Civil Lines police station by 4pm. While Tyagi, the Laxmi Nagar MLA, excused himself saying he was in Kolkata and sought a week's time to appear for questioning, Rishi had failed to reach the Civil Lines police station by the stipulated time citing illness, police said. He, however, reached the police station around 6pm and joined the questioning by police.

The questioning with Rishi ended after two hours. Some more AAP MLAs are likely to be summoned after Holi, a senior police officer said. The role of Tyagi and Rishi in the alleged assault on Chief Secretary Prakash is under investigation as they were present at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence, where the alleged assault happened on the night of February 19-20. Eleven MLAs, apart from Kejriwal, his adviser V K Jain and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, were present during the meeting at Kejriwal's residence when Prakash was allegedly attacked. On February 23, a police team examined the CCTV surveillance system installed at the chief minister's residence in Civil Lines area and seized the hard disc. Two other AAP MLAs - Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal - were arrested and are now in judicial custody in connection with the case. Jain was also questioned in connection with the alleged assault. The alleged assault on the chief secretary has triggered a bitter tussle between the Delhi government and its bureaucracy. Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia yesterday accused Lt Governor Anil Baijal of siding with the government officers. In a terse letter to Baijal, Sisodia equated the IAS officers' association with a "khaap panchyat" and attacked him for "backing" its "fatwa" to boycott official meetings with AAP ministers. The officers have boycotted meetings with AAP ministers since the attack and Baijal has asked Kejriwal to reach out to the officers and end the row.

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