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House stands divided, Anna vows to fight on
Maintaining that the ongoing “Jan Lok Pal” agitation would be a “do-or-die” battle for him and his colleagues, Anna Hazare said here on Tuesday that Team Anna would not be cowed down by threats from certain quarters that it would not be allowed to campaign in five Assembly poll-bound States.
“It is going to be a long-drawn battle to have a strong Jan Lokpal Bill enacted in the country. We will be touring five Assembly poll-bound States. Some people are threatening us against touring and campaigning in these States. They are threatening us with dire consequences if we tour these States. (Referring to himself) what can one do to a person who does not fear death,” Hazare said.
Undeterred by a lower than expected turn-out of people at the State-owned MMRDA ground at Bandra-Kurla complex in north-east Mumbai, 74-year-old Hazare began three-day fast, as part of what he called ‘aar paar ki ladai’ (do-or-die battle) for a strong Lokpal Bill.
The Gandhian said that his team, once it was through with its Jan Lokpal agitation, would resort to another agitation for “Right to Reject” law, through which “we can prevent goondas (hoodlums) from entering Parliament and State Assemblies in the country”.
“First, we will battle for Jan Lokpal. After that our agitation for Right to Reject will begin … With that legislation, we can prevent hoodlums from entering Parliament and State Assemblies,” Hazare said.
Expressing intent to carry on with the Jan Lokpal agitation till the 2014 general elections in the country, Hazare said that he would tour the country and campaign against those affecting the national interests. “ We will tell the people that there is danger for treasuries not from the thieves but from those responsible for protecting them. These people are gaddars ( betrayers).”
After offering prayers at the Gandhi statute and meditating for 15 minutes at Juhu-Santa Cruz in north-west Mumbai, Hazare — accompanied by core Team Anna members Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi and Manish Sisodia — travelled by road in an open truck at the MMRDA ground at around 12.30 pm, to begin his fast. En route to the MMRDA ground, some 20 youngsters waved black flags at Hazare and raised slogans against him “for holding the country to ransom”.
There were sparse crowds at the MMRDA ground at that time. Unlike Hazare’s two earlier fasts held in New Delhi in April and August this year, there was a turn-out of people ranging between 30,000 and 50,000, the estimated number of people that made to the venue of Gandhian’s third round of fast ranged between 3,000 and 10,000 at different points of time during the day. On their part, the organisers — India Against Corruption (IAC) — pegged the turn-out at around 30,000.
Reiterating that the Manmohan Singh dispensation had “cheated” not just him or Team Anna, but the entire country, Hazare said that he and team members would campaign against the UPA Government in the forthcoming Assembly polls in five States.
Hazare also came down heavily on the Centre and State Government for acquiring land in rural areas for different projects without obtaining the necessary permission from “Gram Sabhas”.
Maintaining that the ongoing “Jan Lok Pal” agitation would be a “do-or-die” battle for him and his colleagues, Anna Hazare said here on Tuesday that Team Anna would not be cowed down by threats from certain quarters that it would not be allowed to campaign in five Assembly poll-bound States.
“It is going to be a long-drawn battle to have a strong Jan Lokpal Bill enacted in the country. We will be touring five Assembly poll-bound States. Some people are threatening us against touring and campaigning in these States. They are threatening us with dire consequences if we tour these States. (Referring to himself) what can one do to a person who does not fear death,” Hazare said.
Undeterred by a lower than expected turn-out of people at the State-owned MMRDA ground at Bandra-Kurla complex in north-east Mumbai, 74-year-old Hazare began three-day fast, as part of what he called ‘aar paar ki ladai’ (do-or-die battle) for a strong Lokpal Bill.
The Gandhian said that his team, once it was through with its Jan Lokpal agitation, would resort to another agitation for “Right to Reject” law, through which “we can prevent goondas (hoodlums) from entering Parliament and State Assemblies in the country”.
“First, we will battle for Jan Lokpal. After that our agitation for Right to Reject will begin … With that legislation, we can prevent hoodlums from entering Parliament and State Assemblies,” Hazare said.
Expressing intent to carry on with the Jan Lokpal agitation till the 2014 general elections in the country, Hazare said that he would tour the country and campaign against those affecting the national interests. “ We will tell the people that there is danger for treasuries not from the thieves but from those responsible for protecting them. These people are gaddars ( betrayers).”
After offering prayers at the Gandhi statute and meditating for 15 minutes at Juhu-Santa Cruz in north-west Mumbai, Hazare — accompanied by core Team Anna members Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi and Manish Sisodia — travelled by road in an open truck at the MMRDA ground at around 12.30 pm, to begin his fast. En route to the MMRDA ground, some 20 youngsters waved black flags at Hazare and raised slogans against him “for holding the country to ransom”.
There were sparse crowds at the MMRDA ground at that time. Unlike Hazare’s two earlier fasts held in New Delhi in April and August this year, there was a turn-out of people ranging between 30,000 and 50,000, the estimated number of people that made to the venue of Gandhian’s third round of fast ranged between 3,000 and 10,000 at different points of time during the day. On their part, the organisers — India Against Corruption (IAC) — pegged the turn-out at around 30,000.
Reiterating that the Manmohan Singh dispensation had “cheated” not just him or Team Anna, but the entire country, Hazare said that he and team members would campaign against the UPA Government in the forthcoming Assembly polls in five States.
Hazare also came down heavily on the Centre and State Government for acquiring land in rural areas for different projects without obtaining the necessary permission from “Gram Sabhas”.
