Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday tore into the saffron regime over the “blatant assault on democracy” by way of the arrest of her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal.

Expressing outrage at the arrest of chief ministers from non-BJP parties, she alleged that tainted leaders from other parties had been allegedly allowed to go scot-free after they joined the BJP.

Mamata, to whom Kejriwal has been a friend and an ally for years in the national Opposition space, issued a statement of unequivocal condemnation on Friday afternoon after his arrest on Thursday night.

“I vehemently condemn the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, the sitting elected Chief Minister of Delhi elected by the people. I have personally reached out to Smt Sunita Kejriwal to extend my unwavering support and solidarity,” she wrote on X.

Kejriwal, also the AAP’s national convener, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday night in connection with a money-laundering case of the state’s excise policy.

“It’s outrageous that… elected Opposition CMs are being deliberately targeted and arrested while individuals accused under CBI/ED investigations are allowed to continue their malpractices with impunity, especially after aligning with the BJP,” added the Trinamul Congress chief, who has for years been one of the loudest voices of criticism in India against the BJP-led Centre’s alleged agency raj or misuse of central agencies to suppress dissent and politically corner the Opposition. “This is a blatant assault on democracy,” she added.

Given Mamata and Kejriwal’s proximity, her public silence on his arrest for over 15 hours had prompted speculative murmurs in the political arena on what it might
imply. But Trinamul insiders rubbished such speculation, and underscored that she
was one of the first to speak to Kejriwal’s wife. Senior leaders of her party were in
constant touch with their counterparts from the AAP under her instructions.

The arrest prompted Mamata — who pulled the plug on INDIA to go it alone this general election in Bengal — to send representatives to take part in a meeting of the non-BJP bloc in a first this year.

“Today, our INDIA alliance will meet the EC to express our strong objection to the deliberate targeting and arrests of opposition leaders, particularly during the MCC period,” she wrote. The model code of conduct kicked in on March 16.

“To this end, I have designated @derekobrienmp and @MdNadimulHaque6 to represent @AITCofficial in this crucial meeting with the Election Commission,” added Mamata, referring to her party’s Rajya Sabha members Derek O’Brien and Md. Nadimul Haque.

Later in the day, at a Katwa rally, Mamata’s nephew and Trinamul MP Abhishek Banerjee attacked the saffron regime for the latter’s alleged misuse of central agencies.

“You are in power today because people gave you a mandate. It’s because of people’s mercy that you are an elected representative at any level… in our democracy. The day people turn away... it would take but 10 minutes for your arrogance to be smashed to dust,” said Abhishek.

TMC slams governor

Trinamul on Friday lodged an official complaint with the Election Commission of India against governor C.V. Ananda Bose, accusing him of illegally meddling with the general election process by trying to run a parallel office akin to the poll panel. Attacking Bose for launching the “Log Sabha” portal for voter grievances, Trinamul alleged that it undermined the EC and confused people at large.