New Delhi, Mar 22 (EFE).- Mass protests were called in the Indian capital on Friday after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested, just weeks before the general elections in the country.
Top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which controls the local government in Delhi, called for nationwide demonstrations in front of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) offices after a team from a financial crime agency arrested Kejriwal late Thursday for alleged corruption.
BJP heads the federal government which exercises control over the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the central crime agency that arrested Kejriwal.
“I appeal to everyone to protest in front of BJP offices across the country against this dictatorship,” AAP leader Gopal Rai said in a press conference hours after the arrest on Thursday.
Kejriwal is among the prominent opposition leaders challenging Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP in the general elections scheduled from April to June.
Security forces on Friday increased police presence in the capital, especially near the office of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), where Kejriwal is currently held.
The New Delhi police also closed several roads and set up barricades in the city center in response to massive protests called by APP and supported by India’s main opposition party, Congress.
AAP called the arrest, which marks the first time a sitting chief minister has been taken into custody, politically motivated.
“It is clear that Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest is BJP’s political conspiracy. It is using ED to arrest an opposition leader in a case where, even after two years of investigation, the agency has not recovered a single rupee,” AAP leader and Delhi cabinet minister Atishi said.
Kejriwal’s arrest pertains to the capital’s liquor policy case, which aimed to reduce government control over alcohol sales in New Delhi.
Several AAP politicians are accused of favoring private alcohol dealers and receiving kickbacks through the policy, briefly implemented between 2021 and 2022.
On Thursday, Kejriwal skipped the ED summons for the ninth time in this case, following which he was taken into custody.
Opposition leaders across party lines condemned the arrest and called it a “decay of democracy,” as he is one of the most critical voices against Modi, who is seeking a third consecutive term in the upcoming elections. EFE
mvg/up/sc
