New Delhi : A court here on Monday extended by one day the police custody of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislator Amanatullah Khan, arrested on the charge of threatening a woman.
Metropolitan Magistrate Sheetal Chaudhary extended the police remand after the Delhi Police sought his two-day custody.
The police told the court that Khan’s questioning was required to arrest other co-accused and recover a motorcycle since the woman claimed a man with a muffled face riding the bike had tried to kill her while she was going to record her statement before a magistrate a few days ago.
The court then allowed police to quiz Khan, who represents Okhla seat in south Delhi, till July 26.
Earlier, Khan was presented in the court after the expiry of his one-day police custody.
Hundreds of Khan’s supporters reached the Saket courts complex and protested against his arrest and shouted slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging the arrest of the Aam Aadmi Party lawmaker was a “political vendetta”.
The 35-year-old woman had filed a complaint against Khan on July 20 for threatening her with dire consequences.
A case was registered against the legislator under Sections 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code at the Jamia Nagar police station in south Delhi on July 20.
Defence counsels H.S. Phoolka and Madan Lal opposed the police plea for extension of police remand, saying the non-bailable offence of attempted culpable homicide was added so that the AAP lawmaker cannot get bail easily.
“In this FIR, nothing has been shown that any attempt was made by the legislator to threaten the woman,” Phoolka said.
The complainant said she went to Khan’s residence in the Batla House locality here on July 10 to complain about the poor electricity supply in Jasola area where she resides.
One of Khan’s supporters allegedly abused the woman and threatened her with dire consequences, she complained, adding the supporter said he was abusing her on the “orders of Khan”.
Phoolka told the court that the MLA was not even present at his residence at that time and police failed to show on record that the man who “threatened” her was associated with the AAP lawmaker.
Phoolka said the FIR was registered after 10 days of the alleged incident.
Lawyer Lal blamed the woman for repeatedly knocking on the door of the MLA’s house late at night.
The defence cited video footage and a transcript of the woman’s purported conversation, wherein she says police officials asked her “to add allegations of threats and killing her” in the FIR and claims that Khan was falsely implicated.
Khan filed a counter-case on Saturday and claimed he was not even in Delhi when he is alleged to have threatened the woman.
The AAP released a secretly shot video of the woman on Saturday, wherein she is allegedly heard saying she was told by the Station House Officer concerned to level rape charges against Khan.