This Article is From Sep 01, 2011

Is RSS working hard for affiliation with Anna?

Is RSS working hard for affiliation with Anna?
Since the government agreed to Anna Hazare's three must-have powers for the new Lokpal or anti-corruption agency, the activist ended his fast and Team Anna has been publicly praising the Prime Minister.

The Manmohan Government's relief is not shared by the Congress. The grand old party is worried about the manner in which the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh(RSS) and political rival -the BJP - silently but actively aided the 74-year-old's popular protests. The saffron outfit turned the protests at sites like the Ramlila Ground in Delhi - into an opportunity.

Through some visible and not so visible moves the RSS has tried to associate itself to Anna's campaign.
On Tuesday, Mohan Bhagwat, the head of the BJP's parent body made a rare public appearance in Pune and said that "people were just fed up of corruption and they had no one to look up to and then came Anna's agitation which restored people's faith and also gave a boost to their confidence."

Less than a fortnight ago the RSS top brass had met in Ujjain and cleared a 'Support Anna' resolution. Spurred by this BJP's Nitin Gadkari wrote to Anna, pledging his support.

Old RSS hand and ex BJP Delhi Unit Chief Mangeram Garg - was heading the Sangh's "ops-room".
At Ramlila Maidan, Anna's home during his 12 day fast, Sangh affiliates posted hundreds of men in the crowd, who could be identified by their chant of Vande Mataram.

Kumar Vishwas, once a senior man within the RSS, was Anna's stage manager at Ramlila Maidan and was often seen reciting poems and introducing guests on stage. Coincidentally Vishwas was the stage manager for Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev's aborted protests too.

Tejinder Pal of the Party's Yuva Morcha, which is the youth wing of the BJP helped mobilize those who protested outside the homes of Congress leaders to signal their dissastisfaction.

The free meals that were a big draw at Ramlila Madian were funded. by the RSS' affiliate Goraksha (save the cow) unit.

But the RSS kept its involvement discrete.  Anna insulated his protests from the saffron taint by forbidding right-or left wing leader from sharing the stage with him.  In fact two BJP MPs who visited Ramlila Maidan - Ananth Kumar and Gopinath Munde- to express solidarity to Anna - were heckled by the crowd.

Team Anna opted to ignore the presence of RSS ranks among the protestors and the criticism it drew. 

"There was no direct financial support from the RSS to IAC (India Against Corruption movement).  There were no direct links with them or to funding, but they could well be part of the thousands and lakhs of volunteers who were helping with food ...and there's nothing wrong with that," said one of Anna's closest associates, Prashant Bhushan.

Anna has warned that he has other causes - like electoral reforms for which he plans to campaign.  By affiliating closely with Anna, the RSS and the BJP are hoping to gain political points as key states like UP get ready to vote.
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