By Sushil Kutty
On Saturday Sunitha Kejriwal made her entry, not Rabri Devi-like, but reminding the people of Delhi of what could happen if Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is sent to judicial custody instead of released on bail. Chief Minister Kejriwal’s wife addressed the “nation” on behalf of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Kejriwal’s wife conveyed the Chief Minister’s message to “Indians nationwide” that he will return and they need not worry as “things will all be fine”.
Sunitha Kejriwal specifically mentioned “deshwasiyon”, and not “Dilli-wasiyon”, and she sat in an official-looking setting with her back to a wall on which were hanging very sarkari-looking portraits of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Arvind Kejriwal’s heroes. Whatever little could be seen of the room, it looked like the Delhi Chief Minister’s office.
Except that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had spent his last two nights in ED custody, on two mattresses laid out on the floor of an ED lock-up, where Kejriwal slept after a day spent in the Rouse Avenue court, which remanded him to Enforcement Directorate custody for six days.
Meanwhile, the timing of Kejriwal’s arrest is being questioned, did not matter if it was Kejriwal himself who led the way in delaying arrest by skipping ED summons upon summon as if to time the arrest to the exact minute he wanted it to, which happened to be on the eve of the 2024 general elections. The timing of the arrest could be the BJP’s undoing.
You see, the Delhi excise policy case has been under ED probe for over two years and Kejriwal could have answered to the summons, but Kejriwal chose to skip and dodge, hiding in plain sight. Now, the question of timing the arrest can only be for election perception-management. The AAP Chief is hoping to garner sympathy and votes and chances are he will get both.
Sunitha Kejriwal’s introduction could mean only two things: The Chief Minister’s post will remain in the family and Arvind Kejriwal does not trust his own shadow forget Atishi Marlena or anybody else from the Kejriwal ministry. It also means that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gets another instance of “parivarvad” to beat INDI-Alliance with.
That said, the perception battle has only now begun in earnest. Besides the question over the timing of the arrest, there are also the circumstances surrounding his arrest; the politics behind it and how unconscionable has been the enforcement directorate’s conduct? Let’s not forget, central investigating agencies under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s watch have been under a cloud for years and now, it’s learnt, under the glare of the international lens, too.
The German foreign ministry, for instance, has asked the Government of India to see to it that Kejriwal gets a “free and fair” trial. This is called “foreign interference in India’s internal affairs”, but whose fault is it? The Modi government’s, of course? Foreign governments do not trust the workings of the Modi government and, however, unfair it is, the Indian judiciary hasn’t been spared.
More foreign governments are likely to follow Germany’s example. So, the world’s eyes are on India at a time when India is all set to elect another government and as Kejriwal is made an example of by the powers that be. The good news is the arrest has brought opposition parties together in a show of unity. This time, there is no doubt that the opposition unity on display after Kejriwal’s arrest is for real.
AAP minister Atishi Marlena had told the INDI-Alliance beforehand that the Centre had a “clear intent to arrest” Kejriwal and that’s exactly what happened, whether helped by Kejriwal or not. No wonder, people are questioning the “integrity of the investigative process”, doesn’t matter how honest and hardworking the ED sleuths are.
The PMLA law was recently tightened to ensure that “no one escaped its draconian provisions”. The central government denies this but the government’s detractors aren’t backing away. Arvind Kejriwal is a sitting Chief Minister and has a different standing from Sanjay Singh and even Manish Sisodia. Nine summons were issued and he called all of them “illegal”.
Arvind Kejriwal was also rebuffed by the Delhi High Court, which refused him protection from arrest. The anti-corruption crusader used to be one of the “India Against Corruption” who rubbed shoulders with the likes of Kiran Bedi and Anna Hazare. The retired army driver has accused Kejriwal of drowning himself in making alcohol policies, clearly in no mind to help Kejriwal in this, his time of need.
But AAP need not worry as Kejriwal is already setting the stage for what will happen after the elections and what will transpire after he makes it out of jail. Kejriwal’s plan depends on whether or not the INDI-Alliance defeats Modi in his quest for “abki baar, 400 paar”. Arvind Kejriwal is looking for a Shining India-type end to Modi’s “Amrit Kaal”.
And Sunitha Kejriwal, if she is more than just a messenger, will be the second time that the proverbial woman behind the man takes over from the man. Jailed Hemant Soren’s wife Kalpana Soren did not make the cut, overlooked by Hemant Soren’s peers, but Arvind Kejriwal’s only peers to match those of Soren are in jail. So, will it be “Chief Minister Sunitha Kejriwal” if the Rouse Avenue Court remands Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to a cell in the Tihar? (IPA Service)
