NEW DELHI: A day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest by the ED in connection with an alleged liquor policy scam, cabinet ministers, AAP MLAs, and workers on Friday took to the streets of central Delhi, protested, and raised slogans against the probe agency and the BJP while its lawyers approached the court for the bail of their leader.
In the morning, carrying placards with the slogan ‘Main bhi Kejriwal’ and chanting anti-BJP slogans, several AAP workers, including women, assembled at ITO to march towards the BJP headquarters at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg where security personnel were deployed in large numbers.
The two ministers—Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj—were taken away in police buses after they refused to disperse from the ITO intersection, which is near the headquarters of the AAP and the BJP and where prohibitory orders under section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure were in force.
“I have been detained by the Delhi Police while peacefully protesting at ITO. First, these people arrest the chief minister of Delhi in false cases, and now those participating in peaceful protests, are also being arrested. If this isn’t the murder of democracy, then what is?” Atishi posted on X.
“We were going towards ITO for peaceful protest when all the workers and leaders of AAP were detained by police,” Bharadwaj said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Harsha Vardhan said that ITO is a busy junction and is not a designated site for protest. “ITO or DDU Marg is not a designated site for protest. Massive traffic issues can arise due to such kind of situations. There are several vital installations and important offices are located here. Protesters were removed from the site to maintain law and order situation and proper traffic flow,” said the DCP.
AAP leader Gopal Rai has said that party leaders will gherao the Prime Minister’s residence at Lok Kalyan Marg on March 26 to protest against the arrest of Kejriwal.
Congress joins
The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) staged a protest at central Delhi against the BJP-led central government, alleging that it was dismantling democracy by targeting opposition parties through probe agencies such as the ED. The youth wing of the Congress also raised the issue of the freezing of the party’s accounts ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
“The central government is dismantling democracy by targeting opposition parties through agencies like the Enforcement Directorate, the Income Tax Department and the Central Bureau of Investigation,” IYC president Srinivas BV said. The protesters tried to march towards Shastri Bhawan but were stopped by the police. Following Kejriwal’s arrest Thursday evening, the AAP had given a nationwide call for protest against the BJP.
AAP worried about Kejriwal’s security in ED custody: Atishi
Delhi cabinet minister Atishi said the AAP is worried about the safety of Kejriwal in ED custody as he has been accorded Z+ security. Addressing a press conference in the national capital, Atishi said this is for the first time in India’s democratic history that a national party’s chief has been arrested before the Lok Sabha polls. “Being the Chief Minister of Delhi, Kejriwal is given Z+ security. Now he is in ED custody. Who will be responsible for Kejriwal’s safety? Who is entering his lock-up in the ED office? The Centre has to answer about his security arrangements there,” she said. She accused the BJP of hatching a “political conspiracy” against Kejriwal and the opposition leaders.