The Delhi Police on December 16 arrested Mahesh Kumawat, a co-conspirator of the security breach that unfolded in the Parliament on December 13. The 33-year-old associate of ‘mastermind’ of the act, Lalit Jha, Mr Kumawat is booked for conspiracy and destruction of evidence.
While seeking Mr Kumawat’s custody, the Delhi Police told Patiala House Court that the conspiracy behind the recent security breach in the Parliament was being planned for the last two years. The police added that the accused had multiple meetings in various Mysuru, Gurugram and Delhi and their sole aim was to create an anarchy and compel government to get their ‘illegal demands’ met.
The submissions were made by Public Prosecutor Akhand Pratap Singh in the court of Additional Sessions Judge (special judge NIA), Hardeep Kaur.
Citing reasons like recovering destroyed and damaged electronic devices used to plan the security breach, the Delhi Police sought 15 days of police custody for Mr Kumawat. The court remanded him to seven days of police custody.
Mr. Kumawant, who was wearing slippers while being produced in the court, told the legal aid provided to him, that he wasn’t even informed about the grounds on which he was arrested. A 9th pass Kumawat added that he wasn’t allowed to speak to family or get a lawyer.
His legal aid when objected that why his client wasn’t informed about the ground of arrest which is his fundamental right, Mr Singh waved a copy of the FIR in the court and said that he was shown the same. The legal aid submitted in the court that his client can’t read and write.
The police said that Mr. Kumawat and his cousin, Kailash had provided shelter to Mr. Jha when he fled from the Capital. According to police sources Mr. Jha had reached Kuchaman city on a bus from the Capital where he met, Mr Kumawat, who was also supposed to join the group but couldn’t make it to the Capital since his mother had stopped him.
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“Mahesh and his cousin Kailash took Jha to a rented room in Nagaur where they destroy the phones. The two then informed Kailash that they were going to surrender before the Parliament,” said a senior police officer.
Kailash was detained on Thursday. He told police that the duo had boarded a train for Jaipur fgrom where they will reach Delhi. The duo’s location was traced in southwest Delhi’s Dhaula Kuan. Minutes later they surrendered at Kartavya Path police station.
While Mr. Jha was arrested, Mr. Kumawat was detained. On Saturday the police arrested him for conspiracy and destruction of evidence. The police are investigating the matter further to ascertain the extent of his involvement in the conspiracy.
Mr. Kumawat’s social media profile is replete with posts about the need to bring revolution. His bio reads “agar desh mein kranti lana hai toh khud krantikari hona zaroori hai” (if you want a revolution in the country, then you must become a revolutionary yourself). His latest June 6 post says “satta nehi vyavastha badlo” (change the system and not the Government). In another post Mr. Kumawat writes that the status quo is often changed by people who are the world consider as insignificant. He was fond of Bhagat Singh, Rani Lakshmi Bai and Chatrapati Shivaji.
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The police, so far has arrested five persons involved in the security breach in the parliament that took place on the anniversary of 2001 Parliament terror attack. Apart from Mr Kumawat and Lalit Jha, the others arrested are Neelam Devi (35) from Jind, Haryana, Amol Shinde (25) from Latur, Maharashtra, Lucknow resident Sagar Sharma, 28, and Mysuru resident D. Manoranjan (34).
On Saturday, parents of Neelam Azad had filed an application before the Court to seek permission to meet their daughter and to get a copy of the FIR. The Court issued notice to Delhi Police and kept the matter for further hearing on December 18.
