Ralegan-Siddhi:
In an interview to NDTV, anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare talks about the national support he has received for his fight against graft. He's also blunt about the Prime Minister and opposition leader LK Advani's plan announcement to begin a new rath yatra against corruption.
Here are the highlights of his interview:
Never expected the sort of outpouring of support I got for my campaign
Even I wonder how an ordinary fakir who lives in a village generated this kind of support
The support I got shows the extent of public anger with the government
The PM is a good man, he is not corrupt, but he has no authority over his government
There are too many Pradhans in the Cabinet who want to undermine the PM
No one listens to the PM
Sonia Gandhi has not been able to assert herself against corruption
I have met Sonia Gandhi personally and yet she did little to push a strong Jan Lokpal Bill
If we don't get a strong Jan Lokpal Bill, we will go and sing bhajans outside the homes of all parliamentarians
I do not support Advani's yatra; if the BJP is serious about corruption let them start with strong Lokayuykats in their states
Digvijaya Singh is an old friend who used to touch my feet and greet me when we worked together
The same Digvijaya Singh who used to touch my feet is calling me an RSS man today
The day Ramdev spoke or a private army against corruption I told him I will not support you
Despite the ideological differences with Ramdev I cannot accept the brutal crackdown on his rally
We are sending two representatives to Manipur to hold talks with Irom Sharmila to understand the issues around AFSPA
After Swami Agnivesh was found hobnobbing with government ministers we have decided for now he is not part of our team
Frustration at weak laws made me recommend hanging as punishment for the corrupt; I have now revised my opinion, I think there should be life imprisonment
I don't call all politicians thieves, just the ones who are