Opposition parties in India staged a united protest against the pre-election arrest of Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal. Opponents of the protests on Sunday (March 31) accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling BJP of vote-rigging and harassment, demanding huge taxes. British news agency Reuters reported this news.
At a rally in New Delhi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that Narendra Modi is trying to pre-determine the outcome of this election.
At this time, the people chanted ‘shame’.
Kejriwal, a staunch critic of Modi and an anti-corruption campaigner, was arrested on March 21 in an excise corruption case. He was arrested less than a month before the national elections. Modi is expected to win a record third time in the upcoming elections. Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party is the key party in the 27-party ‘India’ coalition against Modi.
Kejriwal’s party is claiming that this case is politically motivated. However, Modi’s government and the BJP have denied political interference in the arrests.
Rahul Gandhi said if BJP wins this election and changes the constitution, it will set the country on fire. This is not a general election. This election is to protect the country, to protect the constitution.
Leaders of India’s opposition parties including several regional parties were present in the rally. All of them appeared united on one stage despite the complications regarding the distribution of seats in the election.
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi told a press conference that the opposition’s rally was to hide their corrupt activities.
Congress alleges that their party is being subjected to tax terrorism. The government is demanding huge amounts of tax from them, several accounts have been seized. The government is taking these steps to cripple the party financially.
Critics say Modi and his party are using the country’s investigative agencies and tax authorities as tools to crack down on political opponents and reduce impartial opportunities in elections. BJP has been denying such allegations.
In the rally Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal said, this fascism will not last in India. We will fight and win.
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