Govt cannot be trusted: Anna Hazare
New Delhi: Amid the buzz that there are back channel efforts by the union government to negotiate with Anna Hazare, the Gandhian activist on the sixth day of his fast protest on Sunday said the intentions of the government cannot be trusted and hence the fight would continue.
"The government has betrayed us in the past," he said, narrating the whole sequence of events in the past months since the time of his first fast protest.
While thousands of people continued to fill the Ramlila ground in New Delhi on the sixth day of Anna Hazare's indefinite fast protest for a strong anti-corruption agency in India, the corruption crusader said he has sacrificed his life for the people.
"I did not marry. But I urge you to get married, get one or two children and then make them serve the people. I urge you sacrifice a little, not like me," said Anna.
There are unconfirmed reports that the government is tying to use the service of a Maharashtra bureaucrat Umeshchandra Sarangi for talks with Anna.
But the government remained tight-lipped on the back channel efforts.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Saturday legislative process takes time and a national consensus is required on the Lokpal, the anti-corruption ombudsman, but Anna and his team stood their ground and even set a Aug 30 deadline to pass the bill.
On day six, there is no sign of the movement's waning or Anna's relenting. Instead more people are thronging the ground in large number.
Anna has also urged people to gherao the Members of Parliament (MPs) on the Lokpal issue and ruled out a compromise.
Congress spokesperson and Parliament Standing Committee chairman Abhishek Manu Singhvi is the latest leader of the party to put up a brave face as he indicated Sunday that the Standing Committee should be given a chance and they might surprise everyone.
It is only that the Anna group is not ready to wait for any surprise by the government.
A section of the civil society is also for a middle ground and noted activist and National Advisory Committee (NAC) Aruna Roy, who is behind the strong Right To Information (RTI) law in India, is one of those.
"The Standing Committee is an important institution," she told a press conference, adding that such institutions and not be allowed to be hijacked by anyone.
She said even 153 amendments were made in the Standing Committee when the RTI law was finally made.
She, however, called the government bill a weak draft.
Roy is powerful and respectable voice of the civil society and her differences with the Anna group is likely to embolden the government.
Hazare and his supporters earlier upped the ante against the government, demanding that it introduce a tougher draft of the anti-graft Lokpal Bill in the Parliament by next Tuesday and have it passed by Aug 30, retracting the earlier version which they say is too weak.
“If the government has realised what sort of a Lokpal Bill the people want, then there will be no problem to pass it till Aug 30.
“Monday is a holiday for the Parliament. They can withdraw their Bill and introduce Jan Lokpal on Tuesday. On August 29, 30, it can be passed,” senior lawyer and close associate Shanti Bhushan said.
However, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who has lately faced widespread criticism for being out of touch with his people primarily over his tackling of corruption within his government, on Saturday showed no signs of heading towards a consensus with the activists.
In a brief reply to a question asked by reporters, Singh on Saturday seemed to offer little reassurance aiming to end the standoff, stating that parliamentary rules needed to be followed and his government was already doing its best.
Even as he reiterated that the government was in favour of a strong Lokpal Bill, Singh said, “Well clearly there are difficulties. I hope that people will appreciate that there is dynamic of the legislative process which takes time sometimes to get over.”
“...We have fulfilled that obligation (of presenting a Lokpal Bill draft). But we are open to discussions and dialogue. We would like a broad national consensus to emerge. We re all in favour of a Lokpal which is strong, which is effective,” he said.
However, the deadpan response was apparently not enough to pacify the activists led by Hazare who continued to accuse the government of trying to stop the Lokpal Bill, which has already seen a delay of four decades.
“We believe we have got independence but we haven't. The same corruption, same loot, same terror is going on,” Hazare said.
“The funds in government treasuries are ours. The treasuries are not threatened by thieves but by those who guard it,” the 74-year-old self-styled Gandhian social activist added.
Having admitted to have lost a few kilos since the fast began on Tuesday, and amid being regularly checked by a medical team on standby at the protest site, Hazare showed no signs of weakness as he spoke to the gathering taking occasional breaks even on the sixth day.
“The fight will go on till we get a strong Lokpal (bill),” he said, to loud cheers from the crowds.
Hazare also rubbished accusations from leaders of the ruling Congress party that his fast was movement was funded by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Under harsh criticism, cracks of dissent have emerged in the Congress, where while some leaders appeared to have a softening stance towards the Hazare’s popular movement other sections accused it of receiving funding from vested interests.
“Today, they see America's hand, tomorrow they will see Pakistan's,” Hazare said, ridiculing a Congress leader who had said that Hazare’s protest was receiving funding from the United States after the social activist seemed to be gaining an edge over the government.
New Delhi: Amid the buzz that there are back channel efforts by the union government to negotiate with Anna Hazare, the Gandhian activist on the sixth day of his fast protest on Sunday said the intentions of the government cannot be trusted and hence the fight would continue. "The government has...
New Delhi: Amid the buzz that there are back channel efforts by the union government to negotiate with Anna Hazare, the Gandhian activist on the sixth day of his fast protest on Sunday said the intentions of the government cannot be trusted and hence the fight would continue.
"The government has betrayed us in the past," he said, narrating the whole sequence of events in the past months since the time of his first fast protest.
While thousands of people continued to fill the Ramlila ground in New Delhi on the sixth day of Anna Hazare's indefinite fast protest for a strong anti-corruption agency in India, the corruption crusader said he has sacrificed his life for the people.
"I did not marry. But I urge you to get married, get one or two children and then make them serve the people. I urge you sacrifice a little, not like me," said Anna.
There are unconfirmed reports that the government is tying to use the service of a Maharashtra bureaucrat Umeshchandra Sarangi for talks with Anna.
But the government remained tight-lipped on the back channel efforts.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Saturday legislative process takes time and a national consensus is required on the Lokpal, the anti-corruption ombudsman, but Anna and his team stood their ground and even set a Aug 30 deadline to pass the bill.
On day six, there is no sign of the movement's waning or Anna's relenting. Instead more people are thronging the ground in large number.
Anna has also urged people to gherao the Members of Parliament (MPs) on the Lokpal issue and ruled out a compromise.
Congress spokesperson and Parliament Standing Committee chairman Abhishek Manu Singhvi is the latest leader of the party to put up a brave face as he indicated Sunday that the Standing Committee should be given a chance and they might surprise everyone.
It is only that the Anna group is not ready to wait for any surprise by the government.
A section of the civil society is also for a middle ground and noted activist and National Advisory Committee (NAC) Aruna Roy, who is behind the strong Right To Information (RTI) law in India, is one of those.
"The Standing Committee is an important institution," she told a press conference, adding that such institutions and not be allowed to be hijacked by anyone.
She said even 153 amendments were made in the Standing Committee when the RTI law was finally made.
She, however, called the government bill a weak draft.
Roy is powerful and respectable voice of the civil society and her differences with the Anna group is likely to embolden the government.
Hazare and his supporters earlier upped the ante against the government, demanding that it introduce a tougher draft of the anti-graft Lokpal Bill in the Parliament by next Tuesday and have it passed by Aug 30, retracting the earlier version which they say is too weak.
“If the government has realised what sort of a Lokpal Bill the people want, then there will be no problem to pass it till Aug 30.
“Monday is a holiday for the Parliament. They can withdraw their Bill and introduce Jan Lokpal on Tuesday. On August 29, 30, it can be passed,” senior lawyer and close associate Shanti Bhushan said.
However, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who has lately faced widespread criticism for being out of touch with his people primarily over his tackling of corruption within his government, on Saturday showed no signs of heading towards a consensus with the activists.
In a brief reply to a question asked by reporters, Singh on Saturday seemed to offer little reassurance aiming to end the standoff, stating that parliamentary rules needed to be followed and his government was already doing its best.
Even as he reiterated that the government was in favour of a strong Lokpal Bill, Singh said, “Well clearly there are difficulties. I hope that people will appreciate that there is dynamic of the legislative process which takes time sometimes to get over.”
“...We have fulfilled that obligation (of presenting a Lokpal Bill draft). But we are open to discussions and dialogue. We would like a broad national consensus to emerge. We re all in favour of a Lokpal which is strong, which is effective,” he said.
However, the deadpan response was apparently not enough to pacify the activists led by Hazare who continued to accuse the government of trying to stop the Lokpal Bill, which has already seen a delay of four decades.
“We believe we have got independence but we haven't. The same corruption, same loot, same terror is going on,” Hazare said.
“The funds in government treasuries are ours. The treasuries are not threatened by thieves but by those who guard it,” the 74-year-old self-styled Gandhian social activist added.
Having admitted to have lost a few kilos since the fast began on Tuesday, and amid being regularly checked by a medical team on standby at the protest site, Hazare showed no signs of weakness as he spoke to the gathering taking occasional breaks even on the sixth day.
“The fight will go on till we get a strong Lokpal (bill),” he said, to loud cheers from the crowds.
Hazare also rubbished accusations from leaders of the ruling Congress party that his fast was movement was funded by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent of the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Under harsh criticism, cracks of dissent have emerged in the Congress, where while some leaders appeared to have a softening stance towards the Hazare’s popular movement other sections accused it of receiving funding from vested interests.
“Today, they see America's hand, tomorrow they will see Pakistan's,” Hazare said, ridiculing a Congress leader who had said that Hazare’s protest was receiving funding from the United States after the social activist seemed to be gaining an edge over the government.
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