India 'disturbed' by verdict against Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi
India said on Tuesday it was deeply concerned by Myanmar's conviction of deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi and called for the rule of law and democratic processes to be upheld.
"We are disturbed at the recent verdicts. As a neighbouring democracy, India has been consistently supportive of the democratic transition in Myanmar," foreign ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said in a statement.
Earlier on Monday, a court in military-ruled Myanmar found deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of charges of incitement and breaching coronavirus restrictions, drawing international condemnation of what critics described as a "sham trial".
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Suu Kyi is set to serve two years in detention at an undisclosed location, a sentence reduced from four years after a partial pardon from Myanmar's military chief, state TV reported.
A senior Myanmar junta official said on Tuesday the imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi showed that no one was above the law and the army chief had commuted her sentence on "grounds of humanity".
Information minister Maung Maung Ohn also told a virtual briefing that Myanmar's judicial system was impartial and Monday's sentencing of the Nobel laureate and former leader was according to the law.
"There is no one above the law," Maung Maung Ohn said, adding that Myanmar's judicial system "has no partiality".
He was speaking at a rare media briefing during which he and the junta's investment minister said the situation in the country was stabilising.
Myanmar has been in crisis since the military seized power in a February 1 coup, arresting Suu Kyi and most of her government.
Security forces seeking to crush opposition have since killed more than 1,200 people, according to monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, and armed rebellions have sprung up across the country.
