A lot of shoddy articles are doing the rounds on Anna Hazare and his motives. A case in point is this article
1. That the Lokpal, as envisioned by the civil society team, will have para-judicial powers of all 3 arms of the govt. This is misleading as the Lokpal will have the same powers as the CBI does in bringing the case to court. If you have differences with the version produced by Mr. Hazare’s team then you have been given the opportunity and the means to read the proposed bill and give feedback and suggestions. I doubt you have used the means at your disposal and yet you questions and level allegations without having the decency to do you bit to stop corruption. Instead what you seem to suggest it do nothing and let the situation be. Inaction this time around would be akin to treason and in clear violation of our Fundamental Duties as citizens of India (yes, there is something called Fundamental duties).
2. Also that Hazare expressed support for Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar. I take offence when you club Mr. Kumar with Mr. Modi. It is an insult to use their names in the same breath. I respect Mr. Modi as he is a Chief Minister of a state and has done admirable work in governance and development of his state. People continue to hark on Godhra and the Gujarat riots but they forget the good that has been happening after it. They prevent the Muslims of Gujarat from becoming part of the mainstream and keep them solid as a vote-bank for so-called secular parties. We are supposed to be a socialist, secular democratic republic. This implies that no party and govt organ should invoke caste and religion for votes. Yet governments and parties openly woo vote banks of caste and religion, either in the form of reservations or in the form of the fear of the hated enemy. In this case, the very enemy of the minority in Gujarat is their friend who is bringing about development and reducing corruption. It is time we let the minorities develop a free and open mindset devoid of fear and propaganda.
It is foolish to say that when Anna commended Mr. Kumar and Mr. Modi on their governance, he also supported Mr. Modi’s non-governmental deeds. I have seen the news clip in question and it is a sad commentary on your skills as an articulate citizen. Whoever does good governance should be applauded and feted in a time of mis- and non-governance in India. Granted that the way Mr. Modi came into power was controversial but what he has done since is nothing short of commendable. Whom would you prefer, someone with a murky background yet committed to development and clean governance or the current dispensation who do exactly the same things or even worse in the garb of secularism but never deliver anything substantial?
Mr.Nitish Kumar is the most respected and clean politician in India who has changed Bihar from the mess of Congress-RJD. We always blame Mr. Lalu Prasad for the mess that was Bihar but we always forget that Congress supported all his policies throughout his tenure. Mr. Kumar is a politician whom India would be lucky to have as our leader. He has initiated reforms at the grass-roots level, streamlined the police, reduced political interference, locked up criminals and created an enabling environment for Bihar to rise fast. He does not indulge in religious and casteist politics, uses development as the barometer for the voters to judge his government. His government has pioneered in the use of technology for efficient delivery of services to the poor and by connecting all district HQs to report to the CM directly each day. He has pioneered a bill to seize the property of corrupt officials so as to deny them the unfair lure of money that often influences investigations and courts judgments. This has broken an important link in the chain of corruption. There is lot to be learnt from his methods and ideas.
3. People all around say repeatedly that ‘an overhaul of the system‘ is required. This is just the sort of shoddy fence sitting that has led to our current corruption malaise. You only identify the symptom and say that the symptom must go but never bother to point out the how and wherefore. JP proposed a solution but no one followed it. Now Anna is doing something and instead of joining in a constructive debate, you are resorting to character assassination. I had hope to read a well researched article on the nexus between Anna and the ruling class but have ended up reading lame-ass shit that only points fingers. Please get your facts right assuming that you are an affected member of the general public and not an ass-licking stooge like Mr. Digvijay Singh, Mrs. Ambika Soni, Mr. Chidambaram and PM Singh.
4. I do not know about Anna’s exploits in Ralegaon-Siddhi, what I have read in various articles is what you have stated so I will not dispute this point, but I have sufficient faith in the people and myself to not support Mr. Hazare in case we see the ‘casteist, communal and patriarchal‘ policies emerging out in the open.
