'Her parents wrote mercy plea for Afzal Guru': Swati Maliwal's scathing attack on Atishi

Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal on Tuesday criticised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)'s decision to appoint Atishi as the new Chief Minister of Delhi. Swati Maliwal's attack against Atishi came after the AAP leader pipped Kailash Gahlot to become the next Delhi CM, two days after Arvind Kejriwal said he would step down from the top post. 

Maliwal claimed that Atishi's parents wrote mercy petitions to the President of India to save Afzal Guru, a terrorist convicted for his role in the 2001 Parliament attack. Afzal Guru was hanged to death in 2013 for his role in the Parliament attack. 

"Today is a very sad day for Delhi. Today, a woman whose family fought a long battle to save terrorist Afzal Guru from being hanged is being made the Chief Minister of Delhi. Her parents wrote mercy petitions to the Honorable President to save terrorist Afzal Guru," Maliwal wrote in a post in Hindi on X (formerly Twitter). 

She further claimed that Atishi's parents believed that Afzal Guru was innocent and framed for the Parliament attack as part of a political conspiracy. The Rajya Sabha MP further said that Atishi may be a "dummy CM" and that the issue is related to national security. 

She further wrote: "Although Atishi Marlena is just a 'dummy CM', still this issue is related to the security of the country. May God protect Delhi!"

To substantiate her point, Maliwal shared the mercy letter written by Atishi's mother and Delhi University professor Tripta Wahi to the President to stop Afzal Guru's hanging. 

"In the light of our studies, we strongly object to the decision by the Sessions Court that Mohd. Afzal, accused in the Parliament attack case, is to be hanged on 20 October 2006. The hanging will not only be a travesty of justice, it will have far-reaching consequences for peace, secular fabric of the country, and the ability to address the menacing problem of terrorism," the mercy petition by Tripta Wahi read. 

The mercy petition also mentioned that Afzal Guru virtually had no legal defence in the trial court and a junior lawyer was appointed amicus by the trial court going against his wishes. The petition also questioned the Delhi Police's Special Cell, which provided the circumstantial evidence proving Afzal Guru's role in the Parliament attack.

The petition by Atishi's mother mentioned the High Court observed that the Special Cell of the Delhi Police allegedly fabricated crucial documents and kept people in illegal confinement to force them to sign papers. 

It also said that as many human rights organisations have reported, the Cell is notorious for illegal arrests and false arrests.

"We, therefore, appeal to you (The President) to not only set aside the punishment given to Mohd. Afzal but also to facilitate a Parliamentary inquiry into the entire episode," the petition said.