Atishi, Saurabh Bhardwaj detained amid AAP protest
Delhi Ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj were detained on Friday as Aam Aadmi Party leaders staged a protest against the Bharatiya Janata Party over Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest. Kejriwal was arrested on Thursday night in connection with a money laundering case linked to the Delhi excise policy case. A day later, the AAP called for a nationwide protest against the ED's move.
Why does this story matter?
The Delhi CM's arrest comes just days before the Lok Sabha elections. Notably, Kejriwal is the face of the AAP and pivotal to the party's various campaigns. With other senior leaders like Sanjay Singh and Manish Sisodia in jail, the party faces a leadership vacuum. This absence of key figures poses challenges for the party as it prepares for the crucial elections.
AAP protesters were taken away in a police bus
According to reports, the AAP protesters were taken away in a police bus, as officials asked the agitators at the ITO intersection to disperse in view of the prohibitory orders under Section 144 imposed in the area. Reports added that the protesters were raising slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government at the Centre.
Watch: Police detain Atishi
Murder of democracy, says Atishi
After the police action, Atishi said the peaceful protesters were also being arrested, calling it a "murder of democracy." Earlier, in response to the AAP's call for protest, police had erected barricades on the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, where the Bharatiya Janata Party and AAP headquarters are located, and blocked it for traffic.
Read: Atishi's statement here
Kejriwal arrested from his Delhi residence
On Thursday, the ED conducted searches at Kejriwal's residence on Flagstaff Road in Delhi's Civil Lines area, after which he was questioned for two hours and subsequently arrested. Kejriwal is the first sitting CM to be arrested by a law enforcement agency. He was arrested in the case revolving around alleged corruption in the creation and implementation of the Delhi government's excise policy.