As Tuesday's Bharat Bandh gains momentum the Aam Aadmi Party has run into several crises. For one thing, tweets by party leaders indicate that some of those participating in the protests have been arrested. And for another, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been missing, allegedly because he has been placed under 'house arrest'. This incidentally is a rather disputed claim.
Now, we feel compelled to mention here that while 'BJPHouseArrestsKejriwal' is a trending hashtag on Twitter at present, there are many on either side of the discussion. Thus, while some rail against the destruction of democracy, others are sharing memes and jokes to allege that no such thing has taken place. Even the Delhi police had decided to wade headfirst into the debate, tweeting a response to the AAP handle, and sparking the most unlikely of Twitter spats.
It began with a tweeted claim from the AAP handle that simply said that the "BJP's Delhi Police" had detained Kejriwal ever since he visited farmers at the Singhu border on Tuesday.
"No one has been permitted to leave or enter his residence," the AAP said.
The Delhi Police however was having none of it. Alongside assuring the media that the claims of "house arrest" were false, the DCP North Delhi took the unsual route of a Twitter fact check, responding to the AAP with an image of Kejriwal's house gate. This claim of the Chief Minister of Delhi being put on house arrest was "incorrect".
"He exercises his right to free movement within the law of the land. A picture of the house entrance says it all," it explained. And while some were persuaded, others were left rather confused by this photographic evidence.
The AAP too was prompt to hit back, tweeting a video clip from the recent protests that showed a party MLA being "dragged" by cops.
