After Germany, US seeks 'fair' process in India opposition leader arrest

THE United States is keeping a close watch on reports of the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister of the Indian state of Delhi and a prominent leader of the opposition to prime minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and encourages a free a fair legal process in the case, a spokesperson at Washington DC's state department said on Monday (25). Last week, an official of the German foreign office also made a similar remark on the case, resulting in India lodging a diplomatic protest.

Last week, Kejriwal, who leads the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), was arrested by India's financial crime-fighting agency on charges of corruption and money-laundering, less than a month ahead of the country's general elections.

"We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for chief minister Kejriwal," the US official said in response to an emailed query about the case, Reuters reported.

Read: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest sparks protests across India

On Saturday (23), New Delhi summoned a German diplomat to protest against his government's remarks about the opposition leader's arrest. A day before, Sebastian Fischer, spokesperson for Germany's foreign office, said in a government press conference that they expect standards related to the "independence of the judiciary and basic democratic principles" will be applied in the case of Kejriwal.

New Delhi subsequently summoned Georg Enzweiler, the German embassy's deputy chief of mission, to convey its "strong protest" against the remarks by the German official, India's ministry of external affairs said.

Read: Huge blow for India opposition as Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal arrested in graft case

"We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary," it said in a statement. "Biased assumptions made on this account are most unwarranted."

The American side, however, did not make any remark on the India-Germany issue. When asked about it, the state department official put the ball in the court of the German foreign office.

Washington has increasingly come to view New Delhi as a key strategic and economic partner in its efforts to check China's growing global ambition. However, many rights advocates have accused the Joe Biden administration of putting strategic interests above such issues when dealing with India.

India also has good ties with Germany and they have been coming closer on strategic affairs, including defence technology.

The Modi government and the BJP have denied any political interference in the case involving Kejriwal and other leaders of the AAP, many of whom have been arrested on charges of corruption.