Case Turns Nasty

Somnath Bharti case turns nasty: ‘Wife forced to have abortion, slash wrists'

“Today we have served the notice to Bharti at his Malviya Nagar residence. We have received acknowledgment receipt. He has been asked to appear before the commission on June 26 at 3 pm,” Singh said.

Delhi Commission for Women chairperson Barkha Shukla Singh on Thursday alleged that apart from allegations of physical and verbal abuse, Lipika Mitra, wife of AAP MLA and former law minister Somnath Bharti, accused him of “forcing her to abort her unborn child that led her to slash her wrists”.

Meanwhile, Bharti, who was in Kerala for Aam Aadmi Party-related work, returned to Delhi on Thursday and met Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. “Bharti has met the chief minister and put his case before him. He has had marital discord and he has not kept members of the party in the dark about it,” a source said.

DCW’s Singh claimed while Mitra was pregnant, Bharti had unleashed dogs on her and subjected her to mental torture to undergo abortion. The allegations made by Mitra, Singh said, are clearly stated in her 26-page complaint to the commission.

“Today we have served the notice to Bharti at his Malviya Nagar residence. We have received acknowledgment receipt. He has been asked to appear before the commission on June 26 at 3 pm,” Singh said. Mitra’s complaint, Singh said, also stated that Bharti has physically abused her in front of their children and she believed that there was a “persistent threat to her life” from her husband.

Meanwhile, the women’s wing of Delhi BJP held protests against Bharti condemning the alleged abuse of his wife. Scores of protesters marched towards his residence in Malviya Nagar, demanding a probe into the matter. Mitra had also accused Bharti of not providing for his children and sought maintenance. “We will write to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday asking him to give Bharti’s MLA salary to his wife and two children,” Singh said. Mitra had also alleged that she was ill-treated by Bharti’s mother.

Bharti and Mitra were married in 2010 after being introduced to each other via a matrimonial website. Bharti on Wednesday refuted the allegations made by his wife. “Allegations of domestic violence, if any, are baseless and inconceivable. I love my wife and my little children. I urge the media to respect my privacy. I love my wife…She reacted with a false complaint,” Bharti had tweeted on Wednesday.

Somnath Bharti case turns nasty: ‘Wife forced to have abortion, slash wrists’