Delhi court convicts AAP MLA Akhilesh Pati Tripathi for beating up a law student

A Delhi Court on Saturday convicted AAP MLA Akhilesh Pati Tripathi of voluntarily causing hurt to a student named Sanjeev Kumar in 2020 [State v Akhilesh Pati Tripathi]..In her order, Special Judge Geetanjali Goel said that the prosecution had proved Tripathi’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt for offence under Section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).The Court, however, acquitted the legislator of offences under Section 341/506(1) (wrongful restraining a person/criminal intimidation) of the IPC and provisions of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act), 1989.Judge Goel ordered Tripathi to furnish an affidavit of his assets and income.“The State is also directed to furnish an affidavit of expenses incurred by the prosecuting agency within 7 days (this being a matter pertaining to an MLA needs to be disposed of expeditiously). The Victim Impact Report be called for in respect of the complainant Sanjeev Kumar from the Ld. Secretary- II, Central District Legal Services Authority, Rouse Avenue Court Complex, Delhi before the next date,” the court ordered.The case will be heard on April 13 for arguments on sentence. .The FIR in the case was registered on the complaint of Kumar. The complainant stated that on February 7, 2020, he was beaten up by Tripathi and his supporters and they also uttered casteist slurs at him.While acquitting Tripathi of offences under SC/ST Act, the judge observed that it is difficult to believe the case of the prosecution that the accused had uttered any caste-related remarks against the complainant, much less to show any intention to humiliate or intimidate the complainant as he belonged to Scheduled Caste.“Though the complainant had stated about the accused abusing him by caste name, but in the circumstances of the case as referred to above the offences under Sections 3(1)(r) and (s) of the SC/ST cannot be said to be established in the present case,” the Court ruled. .[Read Order]