New Delhi:
Delhi Minister and AAP leader Gopal Rai announced that the battle has begun and said that the Aam Aadmi Party will hold a nationwide protest against the “illegal” arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the ED.
“If the BJP thinks that they can finish the Aam Aadmi Party and threaten the entire Opposition by arresting Arvind Kejriwal, then they are wrong. A battle has begun. We have decided that we will stage a protest at the BJP headquarters at 10 am,” Mr Rai said.
“This (arrest) is a murder of democracy and an example of dictatorship in this country. If Arvind Kejriwal can be arrested then every child in this country can be arrested and his voice can be suppressed. The fight has started today, Arvind Kejriwal is not a person, he is an ideology. Ever since the INDIA alliance was formed within the country, BJP felt that they were going to shrink and hence they decided to arrest every opposition leader one by one, but today the limit has been crossed,” Mr Rai said while saying that the BJP is acting against the Opposition leaders ahead of the polls.
Amid the Aam Aadmi Party’s calls for a nation-wide protest, the BJP said that the party was insulting the Constitution by saying that Kejriwal will run the government from jail and demanded that he resign.
Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva said that Kejriwal’s arrest had brought satisfaction to the people of Delhi.
“The liquor scam started in Delhi in 2021, and revelations have been made one after the other since on how money was laundered with brokers and liquor contractors. Today, Kejriwal’s arrest marks the end of a drama that has been going on for over a year,” he said.
Delhi minister and AAP leader Atishi said, “We have put an application in the Supreme Court against the illegal arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. It will be mentioned in the Supreme Court tomorrow morning. We hope that the Supreme Court will protect democracy.”
She said, “Congress and the INDIA alliance are with us. We will together save democracy.”
AAP MP Raghav Chadha likened the prevailing situation in the country to an “undeclared emergency”.
Raghav Chadha said, “India is under an undeclared Emergency. Our democracy stands critically endangered today. Arvind Kejriwal is the second democratically elected opposition CM to be arrested ahead of the upcoming elections. What are we heading towards? India has never seen such blatant misuse of agencies. This is an act of cowardice, and a vicious plot to silence the strongest opposition voices.”
Extending support to AAP, Congress leader Pawan Khera said, “They (BJP) feel that these steps will shake the INDIA alliance. Or if it derails then they are thinking wrong. There was no need to arrest the current Chief Minister. Arresting shows your intentions. These steps make it clear that BJP is seeing its defeat.
BRS leader KTR Rao strongly condemned the unlawful arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and said that “ED and the CBI have become the chief instruments of repression in the hands of BJP”.
“Political opponents are targeted on unsubstantiated grounds & political vendetta is their sole purpose.”
RJD leader and former Bihar Dy CM Tejashwi Yadav said, “The arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal clearly shows that instead of fighting the opposition democratically, BJP wants to fight the elections under the cover and strong help of investigative agencies and other constitutional institutions. The NDA government has imposed an undeclared emergency on the country, violating political, democratic and constitutional morality and dignity.
Former Chhattisgarh CM and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel said, “Those who do not join BJP will go to jail. Dictatorship is at its peak. Remember, ego is God’s food. We are all united against dictatorship.”
On March 15, ED also arrested Bharat Rashta Samithi (BRS) leader and daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, in connection with its investigation into money laundering charges linked to the now-scrapped excise policy.
“We will continue our protest. Arvind kejriwal ji ki jo sangharsh ko aage badhayenge,” Atishi said.
INDIA bloc parties came out in support of Kejriwal and criticised the BJP for using ED as a weapon against the Opposition.
“It’s the second sitting CM of the INDIA bloc to be arrested. These arrests will only cement people’s desire to defeat BJP, defend democracy and Indian Constitution,” wrote Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury in a post on the social media site X.
Opposition stalwart Sharad Pawar strongly condemned the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and said it showcased the depth to which the Bharatiya Janata Party will stoop for power.
“The arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal showcases the depth to which BJP will stoop for power. ‘INDIA’ stands united against this unconstitutional action against Arvind Kejriwal,” Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar said in a post on X
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said, “Today the ED has detained Arvind Kejriwal. One thing has become clear that the action being taken against a popular and sitting Chief Minister is nothing but a political ruse. This shows that the BJP itself is nervous.”
Former Union Minister of State Finance and Shipping, Pon Radhakrishnan said. “How many chances were given to him? He was not ready to attend the inquiry and gave several reasons for it. Everybody is equal before law.”
Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the excise policy case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member.