Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been arrested on corruption charges, and the US Government can't keep themself calm.
In Washington, Matthew Miller, the US State Department spokesperson, expressed concern over the BJP’s alleged freezing of the accounts of the main opposition Congress Party. “We are also aware of the Congress party’s allegations that tax authorities have frozen some of their bank accounts in a manner that will make it challenging to effectively campaign in the upcoming elections.” The US is urging for “fair, transparent and timely legal processes for each of these issues.”
India slams back
India’s foreign ministry has rejected claims that Kejriwal’s arrest is politically motivated, stating, “India’s legal processes are based on an independent judiciary, which is committed to objective and timely outcomes.”
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“The recent remarks by the US State Department are unwarranted. Any such external imputation on our electoral and legal processes is completely unacceptable,” an Indian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.
The head of the senior US mission in the country, Gloria Berbena, was called in for questioning by the foreign ministry on this matter.
Why is Delhi police keeping Kejriwal in custody?
A Delhi court ruled that Kejriwal would remain in custody until April 1 as part of an ongoing investigation. His party, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), has decried the arrest as a “political conspiracy” orchestrated by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the upcoming national elections. The arrest was done to lament who's in actual power.
Kejriwal’s arrest marks a historic moment – it is the first time that the chief minister who is in the office right now has faced such cases. The bribe charges rationalized against him emanate from a scheme that kickback he got from the alcoholic beverage agreements. The investigation of the government agency at the centre has contended that Kejriwal got violently involved in such corrupt dealings.
{{/usCountry}}Kejriwal’s arrest marks a historic moment – it is the first time that the chief minister who is in the office right now has faced such cases. The bribe charges rationalized against him emanate from a scheme that kickback he got from the alcoholic beverage agreements. The investigation of the government agency at the centre has contended that Kejriwal got violently involved in such corrupt dealings.
{{/usCountry}}An anti-corruption crusade swept Kejriwal into ruling Delhi in 2015. Recurrent conflicts with the central BJP-controlled government illustrate his party’s stance. AAP is a member of an alliance of 27 parties whose adversaries to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party.
The other way round, concerns have been raised about the BJP exploiting the ED (Enforcement Directorate) layer for the tremendous weapon power and anti-corruption measures, which are the central government agency. It is a fact that the ED has been at the forerunning of many investigations, particularly into the members of the Opposition parties, most notable Kejriwal deputy chief minister, Manish Sisodia, who has been in prison for more than a year linked to the scam of same alcohol.
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Kejriwal, speaking in court, labelled his arrest a conspiracy to suppress his party and trap him. He emphasized that the alleged almost $12 million (1 billion rupees) in bribes to the AAP remained unproven.
Calls for Kejriwal’s resignation have come from several BJP leaders, but the AAP remains steadfast, asserting that he will continue to govern Delhi even from behind bars.