Arvind Kejriwal, one of Prime Minister Modi’s fiercest opposition critics, is arrested
Less than a month before the start of the elections, the National Capital Territory (Delhi) chief minister and leader of the Aam Aadmi Party was taken into custody yesterday by India’s financial crime agency. A few hours earlier, the Indian National Congress complained that the government had frozen its funds. Meanwhile, more details are emerging about corporate funding for political parties.
New Delhi (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Indian opposition leaders have condemned the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister of the National Capital Territory (Delhi) and head of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which took place last night, a few weeks before India’s elections are set to start.
Kejriwal, one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's fiercest critics, was taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the national agency that deals with financial crimes, in connection with the capital territory’s liquor policy.
Two other party leaders have already been arrested on similar charges, even though the policy, which included excise duties on alcohol, had been suspended.
Kejriwal has repeatedly accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of using federal agencies to target the opposition. His arrest was therefore not entirely unexpected.
For AAP officials, this move was likely to happen after the party agreed to split seats with the Indian National Congress (INC) ahead of the next coming general elections, scheduled for 19 April-1 June, with results announced on 4 June, as indicated by the Election Commission.
Modi is running for a third term, but has been criticised in recent months for the government crackdown. State agencies have conducted a series of arrests and investigations against opposition political leaders, while investigations of those who side with the BJP have been shelved.
The AAP is part of the 27-party Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), which aims to challenge the BJP in the upcoming elections.
“A scared dictator wants to create a dead democracy,” wrote INC leader Rahul Gandhi on X (formerly twitter). "The arrest of elected chief ministers has become a common thing," he added.
These views were echoed by the AAP. “[I]t is very clear that today the Enforcement Directorate is not an independent investigating agency,” said Atishi Marlena Singh, Delhi’s finance minister. “The ED is a political tool of the Bharatiya Janata Party.”
The AAP ran as an anti-corruption party before it first came to power in 2015, ending 15 years of INC rule in the capital. In 2020, it won a second term.
Although the party continues to have little impact at the national level, it has harshly criticised the Modi administration. Kejriwal, in particular, has emerged as one of the most recognisable opposition figures.
His arrest comes just hours after the INC accused the BJP of crippling its finances through the tax department.
“We can do no campaign work. We cannot support our workers. We cannot support our candidates. Our leaders cannot fly from one part of the country to the other,” INC leader Rahul Gandhi said at a press conference.
This “is being done two months before the elections,” he added. “This is a criminal action on the Congress party done by the prime minister and the home minister,” he added. This “has been orchestrated to cripple us in the elections.”
Meanwhile, by order of the Supreme Court, the Election Commission is releasing more details about electoral bonds issued by the State Bank of India through which companies and individuals could finance parties anonymously.
Such a mechanism was declared unconstitutional in mid-February, shedding light (even if much was already known) on the close ties between the BJP, which collected more than half of all donations, and some of the country's largest corporations.
After the release of the latest data, for example, it turns out that at least 21 companies, including the top five bond buyers, had bought electoral bonds after they were investigated by state agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate.
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11/03/2022 17:45
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