The alleged assault on Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta has triggered a sharp political fight between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The controversy began when AAP MLA Anil Jha claimed the incident was “a drama created for publicity,” saying Gupta orchestrated the attack herself. He went on to call Gupta and the BJP “naatak company” and cited past instances where she allegedly staged stunts.

BJP’s Delhi secretary Harish Khurana hit back, tagging AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on X and asking if this was the party’s official position. He alleged that AAP could be involved in a conspiracy, given what he called the party’s “history of such acts.”

The accused, Rajesh Bhaiji, was arrested for slapping Gupta. Police said his anger stemmed from the Delhi government’s failure to oppose the Supreme Court’s recent order to remove stray dogs.

Meanwhile, AAP leaders including Kejriwal and Atishi strongly condemned the attack, stressing that violence has no place in politics. Gupta also assured her supporters that she was recovering well.

Adding to the row, Khurana circulated an image linking the accused to AAP leader Gopal Italia, which was later dismissed by AAP as AI-generated. Italia accused Khurana of resorting to “cheap antics,” while Atishi reiterated that the picture was fake and emphasized her stand against political violence.

The incident has now escalated into a fresh round of BJP versus AAP sparring in Delhi’s charged political arena.