The United States has said that it is closely monitoring the recent arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, adding that it “encourages a fair legal process”.
“We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal,” newswire Reuters reported quoting a US spokesperson.
“The US is closely following reports of the arrest of Indian opposition figure Arvind Kejriwal,” the spokesperson was quoted by Reuters as saying.
The spokesperson said this in response to an emailed query about the case in which India summoned a German envoy to protest against his government’s remarks about the arrest.
What German spokesperson said earlier
Last week, a spokesperson of the German Foreign Ministry was asked about Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and the Opposition’s claim that the arrest is “politically motivated”.
In his response, German spokesperson Sebastian Fischer, had said Kejriwal “is entitled to a fair and impartial trial, this includes he can make use of all available legal avenues without restrictions.”
“We have taken note of the case. India is a democratic country. We assume and expect that the standards relating to the Independence of the judiciary and basic Democratic principles will also be applied in this case,” Fischer said.
“Like anyone facing the accusations, Mr Kejriwal is entitled to a fair and impartial trial. This includes that he makes use of all available legal avenues without restriction. The presumption of innocence is a central element of the rule of law and must apply to him,” the Germany’s spokesperson added.
India lodges protest against Germany’s
statement
Following his statement, India’s Ministry of External Affairs lodged a protest against it. “The German Deputy Chief of Mission in New Delhi was summoned today and conveyed India’s strong protest on their Foreign Office Spokesperson’s comments on our internal affairs,” the ministry said.
“We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary. India is a vibrant and robust democracy with the rule of law,” the ministry said in a press release on Saturday.
The statement added law will take its own course in the instant matter – as it happens in all legal cases in the country, and elsewhere in the democratic world. “Biased assumptions made on this account are most unwarranted,” the statement said.
