 "Members of Aam Admi Party shout slogans during a protest against the arrest of their party leader Arvind Kejriwal in New Delhi. The US has commented on his arrest, and has called for “fair, transparent, and timely legal process”. AP")
India and the United States are allies; the ties between the two nations have grown from strength to strength over the years. However, it’s not all smooth sailing. There have been several bumps in the relationship and the latest episode is US’ comments on Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest.
New Delhi has issued a strong objection to remarks of the spokesperson of the US state department, who called for “ fair, transparent, and timely legal process ” following the arrest of Kejriwal.
However, this isn’t the only instance when Washington has “lectured” India or interfered in internal politics. In this essay, we take a closer look at the times when New Delhi has spoken up against Washington’s meddling ways.
The Kejriwal row
On Monday (25 March) following the arrest of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in the Delhi liquor policy case, a US state department official said that Washington was closely following reports of the arrest and encouraged a fair legal process.
“We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal,” the US spokesperson said in an email when asked about India summoning the Germany envoy to protest against his government’s remarks about the arrest. Earlier, Sebastian Fischer , spokesperson for Germany’s foreign office had said that like anyone else facing accusations, Kejriwal was entitled to a fair and impartial trial.
The US’ remarks have not gone down well among the Indian administration with Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal saying, “India’s legal processes are based on an independent judiciary which is committed to objective and timely outcomes. Casting aspersions on that is unwarranted.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“In diplomacy, states are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others. This responsibility is even more so in case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents,” he added.
Additionally, India summoned the US acting deputy chief of mission Gloria Berbena to register its protest.
It’s important to note here that hours after this, the US reiterated that it “follows these actions closely” and “encourages fair, transparent, timely legal processes”.
“We continue to follow these actions closely, including the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. We are also aware of the Congress party’s allegations that tax authorities have frozen some of their bank accounts in a manner that will make it challenging to effectively campaign in the upcoming elections. And we encourage fair, transparent and timely legal processes for each of these issues,” the US state department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, said.
US and the CAA
This isn’t the only instance when the US has stayed silent on India’s affairs. India has hit back at Washington over its comments and criticism of the recently-notified Citizenship Amendment Act .
Shortly after Home Minister Amit Shah notified the rules for the CAA — on 11 March — Washington said it is closely monitoring the implementation of CAA. “We are concerned about the notification of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on 11 March. We are closely monitoring this Act — how this Act will be implemented,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller had said, adding, “Respect for religious freedom and equal treatment under the law for all communities are fundamental democratic principles.”
The MEA took up the matter , terming US’ concerns as “misplaced, misinformed and unwarranted”.
“As regards the US State Department’s statement on the implementation of CAA, and there have been comments made by several others, we are of the view that it is misplaced, misinformed and unwarranted. India’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion to all its citizens," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a press briefing.
“There are no grounds for any concern or treatment of minorities. Vote bank politics should not determine views about a laudable initiative to help those in distress. Lectures by those who have a limited understanding of India’s pluralistic traditions and the region’s post-partition history are best not attempted. Partners and well-wishers of India should welcome the intent with which this step has been taken,” he said.
Also read: Why America needs a nuanced understanding of Indian diplomacyAnd when US Ambassador Eric Garcetti remarked on the legislation — he had said that the principle of religious freedom and equality was a cornerstone of democracy — External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar asked if the US understood India’s history.
Speaking at the India Today Conclave, the erudite minister said, “Look, I am not questioning the imperfections or otherwise of their democracy or their principles or lack of it. I am questioning their understanding of our history. If you hear comments from many parts of the world, it is as if the Partition of India never happened, there were no consequential problems which the CAA is supposed to address.”
Furthermore, Jaishankar said his government has principles too. “So, if you take a problem and remove all the historical context from it, sanitise it and make it into a political correctness argument, and say, ‘I have principles and don’t you have principles’, I have principles too, and one of them is obligation to people who were let down at the time of Partition,” he added.
S Jaishankar said he has a problem when people don’t hold up a mirror to their own policies.
Manipur violence
When the northeastern state of Manipur witnessed violent clashes last year, US ambassador Eric Garcetti had raised eyebrows when he was quoted as saying that the US has “human concerns” about the violence in Manipur and is “ready, willing, able to assist in any way if asked” to do.
He, however, quickly added that the situation in the northeastern state is an internal matter of India.
When the MEA was posed a query on Garcetti’s remarks, the then spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said he wasn’t aware of the full details of the US envoy’s comment and added, “I think we would also [want to] see peace there and I think our agencies and our security forces are working and our local government are working on it.”
Bagchi further said, “I am not sure foreign diplomats would usually comment on internal developments in India.”
US comments on India’s religious freedoms
Early in January, the US designated India along with China and Pakistan as “countries of particular concern” for engaging in and tolerating “particularly severe violations of religious freedom.”
Announcing the Religious Freedom Designations, US secretary of state Antony Blinken said that advancing the freedom of religion or belief has been a core objective of US foreign policy ever since Congress passed and enacted the International Religious Freedom Act in 1998.
Earlier too, the US had released the ‘Report on International Religious Freedom 2018’ in which it alleged that Indian “authorities often failed to prosecute perpetrators of ‘cow vigilante’ attacks, which included killings, mob violence, and intimidation”.
At that point, India’s MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said India sees no credibility in a “foreign entity or government” pronouncing “on the state of our citizens’ constitutionally protected rights”.
“India is proud of its secular credentials, its status as the largest democracy and a pluralistic society with a longstanding commitment to tolerance and inclusion. The Constitution guarantees fundamental rights to all its citizens, including its minority communities,” said Kumar.
“It is widely acknowledged that India is a vibrant democracy where the Constitution provides protection of religious freedom, and where democratic governance and rule of law further promote and protect the fundamental rights,” the foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Other instances
Besides these instances, there have been other times when the US has ‘meddled’ in India’s affairs. When India abrogated Article 370, removing the special status to Jammu and Kashmir, there were several US lawmakers who had been critical of the move. Four US senators — two from the Democratic Party and two from the Republican Party — had urged an assessment on the matter.
US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has repeatedly meddled in India’s affairs. She has gained notoriety for her anti-India antics and has angered New Delhi on more occasions than one.
There have also been several examples when US think-tanks have made disparaging remarks about India. But each time, New Delhi has set the record straight.
It’s also interesting to note that despite all of these bumps, India continues to share strong and positive ties with the US. This is best illustrated by the comment by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his interview to the Financial Times wherein he said that relations with the US remain on an “upward trajectory”, and that the “relationship is broader in engagement, deeper in understanding, warmer in friendship than ever before.”
With inputs from agencies