Provocative statement against Arvind Kejriwal: Punjab & Haryana HC stays arrest of Kumar Vishwas

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court on Monday stayed the arrest of former Aam Adami Party (AAP) leader and poet, Kumar Vishwas in connection to a criminal case registered against him for provocative statements against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal about his alleged involvement with anti-social elements.
Justice Anoop Chitkara of the HC announced the order in open court. Earlier on Wednesday, the judge had reserved the verdict after hearing all the parties in this case.
In his plea seeking quashing of the FIR, Vishwas had contended that the FIR against him by the Punjab Police was 'nothing but a means to wreak vengeance' through politically motivated criminal investigation by using the state machinery for oblique motive of political gain.
"The alleged statements/interview was given in Delhi whereas the complainant in an utter disregard to the principles of law, got the present FIR registered in Rupnagar, Punjab where the Aam Aadmi Party, to which the complainant belongs, has just come in power. The complainant has failed to provide any detail of the persons who allegedly hurt him. As per the FIR, which apparently shows that the complainant is obliquely misusing the process of law by narrating a false incident, and, therefore the present FIR deserves to be quashed on this ground alone,” Vishwas had stated in his plea.
It was also argued by the counsel for petitioner that the police agency did not even feel the need to verify whether the alleged incident dated April 12 actually took place, what is the motive and who were the participants.
"By any sort of preliminary enquiry, the police agency would have come to know that the alleged incident is false and fabricated. Further, no preliminary enquiry is done by the investigating agency to ascertain whether any cognizable offence is made out against the petitioner or not, as there is a gap of approximately two months between the alleged statement and the incident, which apparently shows the arbitrariness and high handedness of the investigating agency," Kumar’s counsel had argued.
The FIR was registered against Vishwas on April 12 under sections 153, 153A, 505, 505(2), 116 read with Sections 143, 147, 323, 341, 120B IPC and Section 125 of Representation of Peoples Act registered at Police Station Sadar Rupnagar in Punjab for creating enmity on the grounds of religion and race and other allegations. On April 19, the Punjab Police had sent a notice to Kumar Vishwas asking him to join the investigation in this case on April 26 at police station Rupnagar.