India objects to Washington’s remarks on Delhi CM’S arrest
India on Wednesday summoned a US diplomat and strongly objected to Washington’s remarks regarding Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who was arrested in a graft case last week.
“We take strong objection to the remarks of the spokesperson of the US State Department about certain legal proceedings in India,” the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement. Earlier on Wednesday, the US Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Gloria Berbena was seen leaving the MEA headquarters. The meeting lasted for approximately 40 minutes.
The MEA’S remarks come in the backdrop of a US State Department spokesperson telling Reuters this week, that the US is closely following reports of the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest. “We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal,” the US spokesperson said in response to an emailed query about the case.
“In diplomacy, states are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others,” the ministry said, adding: “This responsibility is even more so in the case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents.”
The ministry said India’s legal
We take strong objection to the remarks of the spokesperson of US State Department about certain legal proceedings in India EXTERNAL AFFAIRS MINISTRY
processes were ‘based on an independent judiciary which is committed to objective and timely outcomes’.
“Casting aspersions on that is unwarranted,” it noted.
Weeks ahead of general elec
tions in India, Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in a graft case. After the arrest of Kejriwal, who is a critic of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has
been protesting continuously.
The opposition parties in India too have criticised the arrest.
This is the second time in the last few days that India has reacted strongly over remarks on Kejriwal. The German Foreign
Office last week had made remarks on Kejriwal’s arrest which led India to lodge a strong protest with the German Embassy in the national capital.
Earlier this month, the US had expressed concern over the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
In his daily briefing on March 15, the US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller had said: “We are concerned about the notification of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on March 11.” External Affairs Ministry rejected the remarks as ‘misplaced, misinformed, and unwarranted’.
Moreover, on March 25, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) raised the alarm on the government’s notification of the Citizenship Amendment Rules (CAR) in a move to begin implementing the CAA. In a statement, the USCIRF said that last week, USCIRF Commissioner Stephen Schneck testified at a Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hearing on this matter.