Centre will use the excuse of Arvind Kejriwal's arrest to impose President's rule in Delhi: Omar Abdullah

Former chief ministers of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti termed the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal as authoritarianism and feared that BJP government might use it to impose President’s rule in Delhi.

“An important person in the opposition alliance has been arrested. Clearly this is linked to the elections…Some weeks ago Jharkhand CM was in a similar position,” Abdullah told reporters here. He further said that there is no party in the country which opposes BJP and hasn’t faced similar attacks.

“This is unfortunately part of a process whereby democratic institutions in this country have gradually been eroded to the point where they almost now cease to exist,” he said. “During the emergency years of the 1970's people still had hope in the courts, but that hope seems to be non-existent now,” he said.


Abdullah feared that BJP would use this situation to impose President’s rule in Delhi. “If AAP insists on retaining Arvind Kejriwal as chief minister from jail, the centre will use this as an excuse to impose President’s rule in New Delhi. He is not the first and he won't be the last,” said Abdullah.

The People’s Democratic Party chief Mehboba Mufti, said that Kejrwal’s arrest reeks of ‘political vendetta and growing authoritarianism.’ “This cowardly act has exposed fears of the ruling party now resorting to desperate measures by manipulating elections even before they are held. History has shown that tyranny never prevails in the face of unified resistance. We will not be intimidated,” she said.

The PDP leader also expressed concern over Kejriwal not getting relief from the Supreme Court. “The fact that a sitting Chief Minister is unable to secure bail from the highest court of the country shows the sorry state of affairs in India where every institution meant to safeguard individual rights is being weakened,” she said.