AAP Leader Somnath Bharti Sent To Two Years Imprisonment For Assault On AIIMS Staff

Photo courtesy: Bar&Bench

New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Somnath Bharti was on Saturday sent to two years in jail for assaulting the AIIMS security staff in a case registered in 2016. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ravindra Kumar Pandey also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the leader, India Today reported.

However, Bharti was granted bail to enable him to file an appeal before the high court against his conviction in the case and jail term.

What happened at AIIMS in 2016?

On September 9, 2016, Bharti, along with nearly 300 others, brought down the fence of a boundary wall at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi, with a JCB operator.

“The court is of the considered view that the prosecution has duly proved its case beyond all reasonable doubt against accused Somnath Bharti,” the magistrate said.

The court convicted Bharti for various offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 353 (assault or use of criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 147 (rioting).

It also held the AAP MLA guilty under section 3 (mischief causing damage to public property) of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The offences carry a maximum punishment of five years in jail.