After United States on Wednesday (Mar 27) once again commented on the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal along with additional remarks on the freezing of Congress bank accounts, India has strongly hit back and made clear that such remarks are “unwarranted” and “any such external imputation on our electoral and legal processes is completely unacceptable.”
“Yesterday India lodged its strong objection and protest with the senior official from the US embassy with regard to the comments made by the US State Department. The recent remarks by the State Department are unwarranted. Any such external imputation on our electoral and legal processes is completely unacceptable,” MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday (Mar 28).
Jaiswal said that India adheres to the principles of the rule of law and other democracies must already know this. He also added that the democratic institutions will be safeguarded from any “undue external influences”.
“In India, legal processes are driven only by the rule of law. Anyone who has similar ethos, especially fellow democracies, should have no difficulty in appreciating this fact. India is proud of its independent and robust democratic institutions. We are committed to protect them from any form of undue external influences.”
MEA spokesperson continued by saying that “mutual respect and understanding form the foundation of international relations, and states are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others…”
India summons senior US diplomat
After US said that it encourages a “fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal”, India summoned US Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Gloria Berbena and took objection on the remarks by Washington.
The diplomat held a meeting for about 40 minutes at the foreign ministry office in South Block, New Delhi.
While reacting on the summoning of the US diplomat, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said, “We continue to follow these actions closely, including the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.”
“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. And we encourage fair, transparent and timely legal processes for each of these issues,” Miller reportedly said.
This comes as Enforcement Directorate (ED), Indian agency to combat economic crimes in the country, arrested the Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam.
(With inputs from agencies)
