NEW DELHI: Three Punjab Police officers who were issued notices by the Delhi Assembly over an FIR registered against Delhi minister Kapil Mishra for allegedly circulating a “doctored” video of AAP leader Atishi have sought 10 days to submit their replies, sources said.
The notices were issued to Punjab DGP, special DGP (cybercrime) and Jalandhar police commissioner for “breach of Delhi Assembly’s privileges”.
Meanwhile, Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, in a press conference on Monday, said, “Punjab Police have replied asking for ten days’ time, but looking at the seriousness of the matter, the Delhi Assembly Secretariat has given them only three days to submit the full report by January 15.” As soon as the controversy emerged,
Atishi and other leaders claimed that the video had been “tampered with by the BJP. Gupta stated that while the Punjab Police claimed that FIR registration and forensic examination of the video clip were carried out within hours, they have sought 10 days to reply to the Assembly’s notices.
“This raises serious questions about the independence and impartiality of the investigating agency,” he remarked. He asserted that the matter relates directly to the jurisdiction of the Delhi Legislative Assembly and that all original videos and documents are the property of the Assembly. He questioned how the Punjab government initiated a forensic examination without even contacting the Delhi Assembly to seek its permission to use the video recording clip.
That too, when already a forensic examination of the video clip was ordered by the Speaker on January 8, according to the demand of the Opposition AAP itself, he pointed out. Gupta stated that this sequence of events appears aimed not at clarification of facts but at “creating confusion and misleading the public”, as sentiments were already hurt.