PANAJI
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and volunteers held a day-long protest fast at the Azad Maidan in the city to protest against the arrest of their leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Both the AAP legislators -- Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva -- joined a band of leaders and volunteers led by the party's State Convenor Amit Palekar.
The party said, the arrest of Kejriwal was evidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party is attacking democracy by jailing and harassing Opposition leaders.
Meanwhile, mid-way through the fast, leaders of the Congress joined the AAP leaders to demonstrate support.
Both Congress and AAP are part of the national Opposition alliance INDIA.
GPCC president Amit Patkar, Quepem MLA Altone D'Costa and both the Congress Lok Sabha candidates -- former union minister Ramakant Khalap and Captain Viriato Fernandes -- joined the AAP protest fast for a while in symbolic support.
A fortnight ago the INDIA bloc had hit the ground when almost all MLAs of the alliance's partners had joined a similar protest at Azad Maidan.
There was a bit of a fracas initially when the INDIA leaders and about a 100 supporters were stopped from entering the historic maidan by the police on grounds that it would violate the Model Code of Conduct.
