New Delhi: The United States has asserted that India was an important strategic partner of the US, adding that the status of the relationship is expected to remain unchanged. US State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller made the remarks while responding to a question on alleged democratic backsliding in India. Earlier, the United States has spoken about the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and frozen bank accounts of the Congress party. Over these issues, the US said that it was watching closely while India strongly objected to the remarks. 

US State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller was responding to a question at a press conference on Monday on the US-India relationship in the context of some articles and opinion pieces critical of the Indian government published ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in India. He was asked how was the US navigating its relationship with New Delhi. 

To the question on alleged “concerns about democratic backsliding in India” and the recent statements by the State Department regarding the alleged “crackdown on opposition”, Miller said, “India is the world's largest democracy. It is an important strategic partner of the United States and I expect that to remain true.”  US officials in the recent past have called India a "very important partner” and that the relationship between the two countries continues to grow.

US' Recent Remarks on Kejriwal's Arrest, Congress' Frozen Accounts 

However, US had expressed concerns over Arvind Kejriwal's arrest by the central agencies and freezing of Congress party's bank accounts. "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," Miller had earlier said. 

India's External Affairs Ministry had responded strongly to it. The MEA called the statements by state department “unwarranted”. Any "external imputation" on India's electoral and legal processes is "completely unacceptable", said the foreign ministry. It had also summoned  US' Acting Deputy Chief of Mission in New Delhi Gloria Berbena- the meeting lasted for over 40 minutes in the national capital.