Manish Sisodia is the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi.
On October 27th, Manish Sisodia, the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, was arrested for “sedition” by the police. This move came after a complaint was filed against him for allegedly inciting violence against Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Sisodia’s arrest was met with a lot of criticism, including from his own party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The arrest itself has also been heavily criticised, with many pointing out that sedition laws were abolished in India in 2013. Here’s everything you need to know about why Manish Sisodia was jailed and what it means for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Who is Manish Sisodia?
Manish Sisodia is a politician who has been serving as the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi since February 2015. He also serves as one of five national spokespersons for his party, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). He had previously served as the Health and PWD minister from December 2013 to February 2015 before being elected as Deputy CM.
Why did Manish Sisodia get arrested?
According to reports, Manish Sisodia was arrested under Section 124(A) of India’s Penal Code which deals with “sedition” or “waging war against Government”. The charge dates back to a speech he gave on August 9th at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi where he allegedly said: “BJP ke log ye goli chalayi hain…Inko maaro joote chaar (The BJP people are using bullets on us… Beat them up with shoes).”
In addition to this comment, it’s alleged that he also said: “If they kill someone tomorrow then we will take revenge…The BJP can’t silence our voice through bullets.”
This isn’t an isolated incident either – there have been several other instances where AAP members have been accused of inciting violence against political opponents.
Most recently, the same charges were filed against Alka Lamba, an MLA who represents Chandni Chowk in New Delhi City Council.
Lamba has denied these charges and called them politically motivated.
Another AAP member Saurabh Bhardwaj, who represented Rohtak in Haryana State Assembly during 2017 state elections, had made similar comments about beating up political opponents but wasn’t charged with sedition because he didn’t mention Prime Minister Modi or BJP leaders by name.
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