Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday, blamed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for the “shocking assault” on AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal which took place at his official residence and said he is instead “shamelessly” moving around with accused Bibhav Kumar.

Addressing a press conference at BJP headquarters, Sitharaman said, “The fact that Swati Maliwal did not register a complaint in Police for 3-4 days (after the incident) means that there was pressure on her from high-level. There is reason to believe that there was enough pressure on her and probably will continue on with her.” A visibly angry FM Sitharaman also dug up old cases of some AAP leaders who are facing legal action over the incidents involving women.

The Finance Minister said that Chief Minister Kejriwal owes an explanation and an apology as to how the attack on the AAP leader took place in his own house, carried out by “his right-hand man” Bhibhav Kumar, while he was present there.

She lashed out at Kejriwal saying that instead of being apologetic over the deplorable incident, he has been “shamelessly” roaming around with the culprit Bhibav Kumar, while campaigning in UP.

FM Sitharaman took Kejriwal to task for ignoring such a serious issue and refusing to say anything over the assault, when journalists asked for his comment on the incident. She said it was shocking that the Delhi CM just pushed aside the journalists’ mic and shamelessly moved on with his political campaigning.

“The women in Delhi are asking - can this CM (Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal) even provide security to the women in the city? Arvind Kejriwal is responsible for this incident,” Sitharaman said.

She said it was unbelievable and unacceptable that Arvind Kejriwal had not spoken anything on the issue.

“Since May 13, the CM Arvind Kejriwal has not spoken even a single word on the act of violence against his own party’s Rajya Sabha female member. It is unbelievable and unacceptable that his party’s female member, who was the chief of the Delhi Commission for Women, was assaulted, and he did not even say anything about it,” she said.