Donald Trump indictment: A watershed moment

Former American President Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, to become the first person in US history to be charged with a crime after serving as the commander-in-chief of the country. The indictment itself is not known to the people and remains under seal so the specific charge or charges are not in the open.

Trump has been planning to run for a second term of Presidency in 2024. What happens to his plans and that of the Republicans who support him is to be seen. For the present, the world only knows that he has been charged with one or more crimes. It was a long process of hearing evidence over a number of days and months. Trump is expected to appear before the jury sometime next week and till then the charges won't be known. It seems Trump had an affair with an adult-film actress in the past and before the 2016 Presidential election, he made a payment to her to keep her from publicly discussing the affair. In a way it means that he bought her 'omerta' to ward off any threats to his political career.

The American authorities are coordinating with Trump's attorney to coordinate his surrender. As of now, nothing is clear about the charges or the intention of the investigation into the offences but if the charges are downgraded, sentences could vary case by case. It is not usual for a person with no criminal record to be sentenced to extensive jail time for a non-violent and low-level felony violation. There is also no clarity whether he could again run for the President post as opinion here seems to be divided.

Ironically, their politics are now no different from ours. Trump supporters are claiming something similar to what Rahul Gandhi's supporters are now saying here – a blatant abuse of power from a DA focused on political vengeance instead of keeping people safe. What does our Opposition say now over the Rahul fracas: It is misuse of systems and subversion of democratic processes used to keep Rahul out of Parliament and to prevent him from questioning the Prime Minister. Trump supporters further call it a 'campaign finance issue' which cannot be used for the proceedings just as the Opposition here says (on Rahul's offensive speech) – a speech delivered in the heat of campaign and aimed only at individuals.

Sounds similar? Eh? Well, Joe Biden and his team owe an explanation here as they are now questioning the legal processes in India over the Rahul issue. Whatever may be the outcome of Trump's issue, it is bound to be used by our Opposition to taunt the BJP here keeping in view the bonding that Trump and Modi had in the past. Nancy Pelosy, the longtime Speaker of the House wrote on Twitter: The Grand Jury has acted upon facts and the law. No one is above the law and everyone has the right to a trial to prove innocence. Hopefully the former President will peacefully respect the system, which grants him that right."