India summons German deputy chief of mission to protest country's remark on Kejriwal's arrest

India on Saturday summoned the German deputy chief of mission to protest against the position taken by the German foreign ministry on the arrest of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying this amounted to interference in the country's judicial process.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Kejriwal on Thursday for his alleged role in Delhi's controversial excise policy for 2021-22 that was later scrapped. The German foreign ministry responded to the arrest by saying on Friday that Kejriwal, like all accused, is entitled to a fair and impartial trial.

The German deputy chief of mission, Georg Enzweiler, was summoned to the external affairs ministry and "conveyed India's strong protest on their Foreign Office spokesperson's comments on our internal affairs".

"We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary," the external affairs ministry said in a statement.

"India is a vibrant and robust democracy with rule of law. As in all legal cases in the country, and elsewhere in the democratic world, law will take its own course in the instant matter. Biased assumptions made on this account are most unwarranted," the statement said.

German foreign ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer was asked about Kejriwal's case at a regular media briefing on Friday, including India's opposition parties perceiving his arrest as politically motivated.

Fischer said Germany had taken note of the case. "India is a democratic country. We assume and expect that the standards regarding the independence of the judiciary and basic democratic principles will also apply in this case," he said.

"Like every accused, Mr Kejriwal is entitled to a fair, impartial trial. This includes that he can make use of all existing legal remedies without restriction. The presumption of innocence is a central element of the rule of law and must apply to it," he said.

India has in the past too rejected the German foreign ministry's remarks on internal developments of the country, including the arrest of rights activists.

The case against Kejriwal pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in formulating and executing the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22, which was later scrapped. The ED has claimed leaders from Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) allegedly received kickbacks worth ₹100 crore in the excise policy.

Kejriwal's name has been mentioned multiple times in charge sheets filed by the ED. The agency has alleged the accused were in touch with Kejriwal for formulating the excise policy.