Delhi MlA has a long record of bad behaviour

Now that Mr Somnath Bharti has surrendered to Delhi Police and been formally arrested, one hopes that the tamasha surrounding the Delhi MlA will come to an end. The law must be allowed to take its course and the case taken to its logical conclusion. The charges against Mr Bharti are serious — they include domestic abuse and torture — and cannot be written off as just another case of marital discord. Mr Bharti, of course, has sought to portray himself as not just the wronged husband but also a wronged politician who is being unfairly hounded by state agencies. This is just a charade and the people see right through it. Even if one gives Mr Bharti the benefit of doubt and presumes that he is innocent until proven guilty in the domestic abuse case filed by his wife, there is still nothing to support his claims of state persecution. The former law Minister of Delhi may waive the Constitution of India as much as he wants but the fact remains that he used every trick in the book to evade arrest for as long as he possibly could. In fact, it will not be a stretch to say that had Mr Bharti not been a high-profile politician or at least a lawyer in the Supreme Court  had he just been an aam aadmi  his case possibly wouldn't have travelled through the judicial hierarchy so quickly. After he was unsuccessful in getting anticipatory bail from a lower court and then the Delhi High Court, Mr Bharti went underground for about a week to avoid the non-bailable arrest warrant issued against him, hoping for relief from the Supreme Court. However, on September 28, the apex court refused his bail plea and ordered him to surrender. And that's when Mr Bharti, with his back firmly against the wall and without another exit route in sight, finally turned himself in.

Irrespective of how the domestic abuse case pans out in legal terms, one can be fairly certain that in the court of public opinion, Mr Bharti, the politician, has lost. Mr Bharti may choose to couch his actions in legalese, saying that he wasn't “escaping” the law but “avoiding” the police etc. But in the public imagination, his reputation has been etched as that of an absconder. The manner in which he reportedly ran from one State to another, changing cell phones and supposedly even putting on disguises, makes him look like a career criminal. Add to this Mr Bharti's previous misdemeanours and indiscretions — from his spamming company to his scandalous ‘judges meeting’, it is seems unlikely that he will be able to script a comeback. Also, the last time he got into trouble with the law, his party chief and political boss, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had given him full support. Mr Bharti, as Delhi law Minister, ironically, had led a vigilante mob and launched a preposterous midnight raid on African nationals in the capital’s Khirki Extension neighbourhood. His actions were widely criticised, almost sparked a major diplomatic crisis for the country, and led to a case of sexual harassment (which is still open) being filed against him. Mr Kejriwal responded with a full-fledgeddharna in favour of Mr Bharti, replete with threats of anarchy and disruption. This time, however, Mr Kejriwal has not just distanced himself from Mr Bharti but publicly labeled him an “embarrassment”.