Delhi Police arrest AAP protestors as they approach the BJP headquarters; DDU Marg subject to Section 144

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Amidst the massive political confrontation surrounding the apprehension of CM Kejriwal's erstwhile aide about the purported attack on AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal, Delhi Police on Sunday arrested several party members as they advanced towards the national capital's BJP headquarters as part of an organised 'Jail Bharo' demonstration.

Per an ANI report, CM Kejriwal, who denounced the arrest of his former aide in the assault case, claimed on Saturday that the central BJP was playing the "Jail Ka Khel" game, which involves locking up party leaders, against his party. He also announced that he would be leading a "Jail Bharo" march to the BJP headquarters on Sunday, accompanied by workers and senior party leaders.

In an interview with ANI on Sunday, DCP Delhi Central Harsha Vardhan Mandava said, "We have made precautionary precautions on DDU Marg to ensure that the law and order are maintained at all costs based on the information we received through social media and other means. To thwart any attempt to undermine law and order, we have put up barricades and are dedicated to deploying sufficient security."

"Section 144 has been imposed on DDU Marg and there is no permission for any kind of protest here," he informed. AAP's 'Jail Bharo' march was scheduled for later in the day, therefore extensive security measures were put in place outside the BJP headquarters. Before the AAP demonstration, Delhi Traffic Police released a warning about potential traffic jams in DDU Marg, IP Marg, Minto Road, and Vikas Marg. It further stated that DDU Marg might stay restricted to traffic from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., advising commuters to stay away from areas where traffic bottlenecks are expected to occur.

Earlier, on Saturday, Kejriwal's former PA was arrested in connection with the alleged assault on Maliwal. He was produced before the Tis Hazari Court, which remanded him in police custody for five days.

Earlier, the AAP chief released a personalised video after Bibhav's arrest, saying, "You can see how they (BJP) are after the AAP. One after another, they are putting our leaders behind bars. They put me, Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain, and Sanjay Singh behind bars. Today, they put my (former) PA in jail. Now they are saying they will put Raghav Chadha, Atishi, and Saurabh Bharadwaj in jail. Perhaps it was our fault that we built schools and mohalla clinics, while also providing electricity for free, which they failed to accomplish. I would like to tell the Prime Minister: you are playing a 'jail ka khel' with us. Tomorrow, I will lead a march to the BJP headquarters along with all my top leaders, MLAs, and MPs at noon. You can put whoever you want in jail," Kejriwal said.

Notably, due to an ongoing criminal prosecution, the Vigilance Department fired Bibhav from his position as the chief medical officer's assistant last month. The impacted individuals claimed that the waterlogging in the capital city and its environs was caused by improper pre-monsoon maintenance of drainage systems and canals.

(With Inputs from ANI)