India summons US State Department official over call for fair legal treatment of arrested opposition leader

. Indias Ministry of External Affairs summoned a US State Department official after the department called for a fair legal process for opposition leader and Delhi chief minister ArvindKejriwal following his arrest last week.. ..

The Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday summoned Gloria Berbena, the State Department Minister-Counselor for Public Diplomacy, according to a diplomatic officer with knowledge of the matter.. ..

His arrest comes as tensions run high ahead of a crucial nationwide election which begins on April 19, in which Modi is widely expected to leave the opposition languishing despite sharp criticism over his perceived erosion of the countrys democratic founding principles.. . Indias main opposition, the Indian National Congress, has also accused the BJP of using the tax department to cripple their finances..

The party claimed their bank accounts had been frozen by the tax department, leaving them unable to use some $20 millioninfunds.. . Human Rights group Amnesty Internationalwarnedfollowing the arrest of Kejriwal that a crackdown on Indian opposition figures and parties by the government had reached a crisis point ahead of the national elections.. ..

The arrest of Arvind Kejriwal and the freezing of Indian National Congress bank accounts a few weeks before India holds its general elections show the authorities blatant failure to uphold the countrys international human rights obligations..

You might be interested in