The anti-politician tirade at the venue of Anna Hazare’s fast is likely to prompt an indignant political class to close ranks and take on social activists in the coming days. Many Opposition leaders who had initially rejoiced when Hazare’s movement cornered the government are now backing the Centre to take a firm stand against the “unreasonable” demands from activists. At a recent meeting with Pranab Mukherjee, key Opposition leaders had asked the...

Anna Hazare told his supporters to prepare for a bigger battle against the government, if the Parliament fails to pass the Lokpal Bill, a law that the country has been waiting for more than 40 years. Setting August 15 as the deadline, Hazare said that certain corrupt politicians might not let the bill pass easily and if need be a stronger fight against corruption would be required. "This is the battle,...

Draft proposed by the Government of India is inadequate and will not serve the purpose, says CPI(M); BJP agrees and disagrees with HazareAs support to the agitation by veteran social activist Anna Hazare in favour of ‘Jan Lokpal Bill' gathered momentum, Congress president and the Chairperson of the National Advisory Council (NAC) Sonia Gandhi on Thursday said his views would receive the ‘full attention' of the government and appealed to...

The massive and spontaneous outpouring of support for social activist Anna Hazare's crusade against corruption has forced the government to sit up, take notice and say yes to a joint committee to draft the Lokpal Bill. But it is holding out on agreeing to Anna Hazare heading that panel. On the third day of Anna's fast, the government reached out first with an offer to set up an informal group, including...

The new Lokpal Bill panel will have equal representation from civil society, but it will remain an informal committee, the Union government told social activist Anna Hazare on Thursday, whose 'satyagraha' for a stringent anti-corruption legislation entered its third day. Hazare's supporters are disappointed there will be no formal notification issued on this committee which would have made it binding on the government to go by it. The deadlock, therefore, continues though...