Assault on AAP minister: Court asks police to preserve CCTV footage

A Delhi court today directed the police to preserve all CCTV footage relevant to the alleged assault on Delhi Environment Minister Imran Hussain.
The direction came on the plea of Hussain that he was mobbed by officials and staffers a day after the purported assault on Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash, after the police informed Metropolitan Magistrate Abhilash Malhotra through a report that it has seized the CCTV footage and provided proper security cover to the minister.
"The SHO is directed to ensure that all the relevant CCTV footage including that of the 5th floor (where the office of the CS is situated) be preserved in compliance with directions," the magistrate said while seeking a compliance report on the same by April 4.

The court also accepted the contention of Hussain that he had not yet been examined by the police to ascertain the names of the persons who attacked him.
"The SHO to ensure that they will take appropriate steps and examine the applicant (Hussain), injured persons as well as other material witnesses and ensure that fair investigation will be done in present case," it said.
The status report filed by SHO Ravinder Malik said that the CCTV footage was still being analysed and efforts to identify the culprits were continuing.

Notices have been issued to 14 people to join investigation, it said.

Hussain, however, submitted that so far he as well as other injured have not been called for enquiry by police to ascertain the names of the aggressors who attacked them.
He alleged that the investigation was being conducted at a snail's pace.
The court had earlier directed the police to provide necessary security if needed to Hussain and had said that the CCTV footage prima-facie showed that the minister was also surrounded by a "herd of people and thereafter criminal force was used against him as well as his staff".
The court, after viewing the CCTV footage submitted by the minister, had said it was clear that he was restrained in the lift, a huge crowd was present and criminal force was used.

The court had on February 27 asked the Delhi Police to file the report after Hussain approached it for preserving the CCTV footage of the alleged incident.
Hussain has lodged a complaint with the police claiming that a day after the alleged assault on the Chief Secretary, he was mobbed by the officials and staff of the Delhi government who raised slogans and prevented him from taking the elevator to his 6th floor office at the Secretariat.
He said he was restrained from going to his office and his mobile phone was snatched during the incident.
The Delhi Government Employees Association had refuted the allegation and claimed that the minister had arrived at the Secretariat on February 20 when sloganeering was going on against the alleged assault on the chief secretary, but nobody manhandled him.