Through a day that saw gatherings on the streets in support of Anna Hazare, the government tried to justify its action against the 74 year-old activist. He was arrested from the apartment where he was staying in Delhi shortly; at 12 pm, he was produced before a special magistrate at the Delhi Police Mess; and by 3:30, he had been sent to Tihar jail.
Home Minister P Chidambaram tried to explain the government's stand in Lok Sabha. The opposition said the Prime Minister would have to make a statement instead.
Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi met with some senior ministers including Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambaram for the second time in 24 hours to discuss the government's conundrum.
The Home Minister in a press conference justified the arrest of the man who is the face of the India Against Corruption Campaign. Mr. Chidambaram said that the government had no choice because Mr. Hazare and his supporters had refused to comply with the police directives of their protest. The conditions included three-day limit on Mr. Hazare's hunger strike, and a commitment to limiting the crowd to 5000 people.
Mr. Chidambaram said that the right to protest is a constitutional right but it should be done with reasonable restrictions.
Mr. Hazare is challenging the government over the new Lokpal Bill that is meant to curb corruption among politicians and bureaucrats. Mr, Hazare stated that the Bill introduced in the Parliament was a malnourished one. Later his team developed a parallel vision- the Jan Lokpal Bill or People's Bill. His critic says that Mr. Hazare's Bill is impractical and grants the Lokpal or ombudsman over-reaching powers that can be grossly misused. They also stated that Mr. Hazare was not an elected representative and that legislation is prerogative of parliament.
The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs which includes senior ministers from the Congress and its allies also focused on the currents swirling around Hazare. The panel decided that the battle with Mr. Hazare has turned into a full-blown media war where the government has lost ground by not being able to share its views correctly. The united opposition had found Anna an effective channel in criticizing the government.
The government's stand that Anna's call for protest is a threat to parliamentary democracy was flatly rejected by the Opposition.
News reported by AR for News vision
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