Labelling the Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest as a ‘mockery of democracy’, Rajya Sabha MP and Senior advocate Kapil Sibal on Thursday said that the Delhi liquor policy case in which Kejriwal has been arrested holds no ground as there is no substantial proof in the case.  Asking the INDIA alliance to come together against the action on Kejriwal, Sibal said, “INDIA Alliance has to decide what to do. I have been saying since the beginning that the alliance has to come together against all of this. This is a zero case. The whole case is based on the statements of the approvers. The approvers statements are not considered, unless there is a substantial proof, there are no proofs in this case”, he said.

 Criticizing the BJP for its role in the electoral bonds case, Sibal stated, “Instead of arresting those they should have, they purchased bonds from them. With the scheme now scrapped, their ability to buy bonds is gone. This is nothing but a mockery of democracy,” he said.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, criticized the government as ‘dictatorial’ and likened the current state of affairs in the country to ‘fascism’.

 “Don’t worry, you have entered fascism. The dictatorial government is putting all the opposition leaders in jail. Constitutional and democratic values are being murdered.As the Lok Sabha elections are approaching, only nominal democracy is left in the country, in reality fascism is going on here,” Abhishek Manu Singhvi stated in a post on X.

Echoing remarks of the senior advocate, several opposition leaders also lambasted the BJP for tarnishing democracy in the country. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor called upon the Supreme Court of India to take suo moto cognizance on the matter, adding that the arrest of Kejriwal is ‘violative of the spirit of democracy’.

 “I call upon Supreme Court to take Suo Moto cognizance on what has happened. What has happened is violative of the spirit of democracy… The court has every right to take imminent action against anything that has a material effect on the elections. This is fundamentally violative of the political rights of every Indian citizen,” Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said.

 Reacting to the arrest of the Aam Admi Party convenor on Thursday night, Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader MA Baby said, “The capital city of India, that is, Delhi, has witnessed some dramatic incidents today. The serving Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, has been arrested. This has been done, no doubt, to the direct knowledge and direction of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.

 Congress MP Digvijaya Singh said, “By making the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, they (central government) have set an example that after a change in any government if a CM is elected by people, can be arrested.”  Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the excise policy case on Thursday after the Delhi High Court refused interim protection to Kejriwal from coercive action in connection with the excise policy case.

Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the excise policy case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member.