India: Delhi's Chief Minister Arrested Over Corruption Claims

Facts

• The Indian government's money laundering watchdog, the Enforcement Directorate, arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, a key opposition figure, on Thursday over irregularities in the state's liquor policy.¹
• Kejriwal, leader of the Aam Admi Party (AAP), was taken into custody from his New Delhi residence after reportedly skipping multiple summons of the probe agency.²
• On Friday, Kejriwal withdrew his petition from the Supreme Court challenging his arrest as he seeks to contest the Directorate's 10-day remand first.³
• The Enforcement Directorate is probing if the Delhi government's 2022 excise policy, which ended its control over the sale of liquor in the capital, had given an undue advantage to private retailers.⁴
• Kejriwal and AAP have denied any wrongdoing, claiming his arrest — which comes weeks ahead of India's general election — is politically motivated.⁵
• AAP — known as the 'common man's party' in Hindi — is part of a 27-party opposition bloc called Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, reportedly formed to challenge Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).⁴

Sources: ¹Scroll.in, ²The Week, ³India Today, ⁴Al Jazeera and ⁵BBC News.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by The Guardian. This is the first time in independent India's history that a sitting chief minister has faced such coercive action. This is part of the BJP's systemic effort to pull the rug from under the Indian opposition weeks before the national polls.
• Right narrative, as provided by The Indian Express. The BJP is walking the talk when it comes to rooting out corruption from India, especially from the higher echelons of power. Kejriwal's arrest shows that, no matter how big the leader, India's agencies will move against the accused in their mission.

Predictions