India expresses “deep concern” over military takeover in Myanmar

India has voiced “deep concerns” over reports of a coup in Myanmar, the largest Southeast Asian country. India has been quick to express concerns over the reported coup.  “India has always been steadfast in its support to the process of democratic transition in Myanmar. We believe that the rule of law and the democratic process must be upheld. We are monitoring the situation closely,” said India’s Ministry of External Affairs in a statement. The ministry added that it is monitoring the situation closely after Myanmar’s military  seized power in a coup against the democratically elected government of Suu Kyi, who was held along with other leaders of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in early morning raids. The reported coup has come as a setback for India’s efforts to scale up economic and development cooperation with the resource-rich country. The “coup” came after recent military interventions in Myanmar over allegations of fraud in November’s elections which was just the second election since the end of military rule in 2011. The military has contested the result, filing complaints at the Supreme Court against the President and the Chair of the Electoral Commission. With this, Myanmar’s democracy icon Ms Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained and the emergency has been imposed for a year, with disruption in the internet services. Reactions by the world leaders The United States has condemned the coup, saying Washington “opposes any attempt to alter the outcome of recent elections or impede Myanmar’s democratic transition”. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for the release of all government officials and civil society leaders and said the US “stands with the people of Burma in their aspirations for democracy, freedom, peace, and development. The military must reverse these actions immediately.” Australia said the military was “once again seeking to seize control” of the country. “We call on the military to respect the rule of law, to resolve disputes through lawful mechanisms and to release immediately all civilian leaders and others who have been detained unlawfully,” Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said. Katsunobu Kato, the chief cabinet secretary, said Japan’s government was closely watching the situation in Myanmar and would do everything possible to ensure the safety of its citizens there. “At this point there are no reports of any clashes, but we’ll update information and take measures as needed,” he told reporters. “Japan believes it is important for the parties to solve problems peacefully through dialogue in accordance with the democratic process,” he added. (Palak Chhabra contributed inputs for this article)