"You can arrest Kejriwal, can't suppress his ideology," says Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann
New Delhi, India: Amid ongoing protests by Aam Aadmi party leaders over the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann reaffirmed the party's unwavering support for Kejriwal, stating that they stand by him 'like a rock'.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, in a post on X in Hindi, wrote, "You will arrest Arvind Kejriwal but how will you arrest his thinking. Arvind Kejriwal is not a person but an idea and we stand with our leader like a rock. Inquilab Zindabad!"
Labeling the enforcement directorate as the 'political team' of the BJP, following Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal's arrest, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann in a post on X wrote, "BJP's political team (ED) cannot arrest Kejriwal's thinking, because only AAP can stop BJP. Thinking can never be suppressed."
Vowing to challenge the authorities through legal means, Punjab minister Balbir Singh said, "We will fight in the Supreme Court, on the streets, in the parliament. We will fight their oppression and atrocities with patience. 140 crore Indians love the Kejriwal model, the youth, farmers, and children trust Kejriwal. Like the Supreme Court gave a historic decision in the electoral bonds case, we hope the apex court gives a decision in this case too," he said.
AAP leader Malvinder Singh Kang stated that thousands of AAP workers will protest in Mohali against the arrest of a 'Kattar Imandaar Chief Minister' Arvind Kejriwal.
"The democracy is murdered in the country. The BJP has done a vendetta politics against a 'Kattar Imaandar' CM. Their only goal is to keep Arvind Kejriwal from campaigning for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Thousands of AAP workers will protest in Mohali today, against the arrest of a sitting Chief Minister," AAP leader Malvinder Singh Kang told ANI.
Meanwhile, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Gopal Rai on Friday announced that a nationwide protest will be held by the AAP leaders against the "illegal" arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the ED.
"If the BJP thinks that they can finish the Aam Aadmi Party and threaten the entire Opposition by arresting Arvind Kejriwal, then they are wrong...A battle has begun. We have decided that we will stage a protest at the BJP headquarters," Rai said.
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.
