Mumbai:
He could not pull the numbers he had in his August protest in Delhi, but Anna Hazare's speech did not seem to hold any misgivings as he thanked the people for giving him energy and warned the government that if a strong and effective Lokpal Bill was not made law, he would campaign against it in five election-bound states.
The day began well for Anna with Mumbaikars out on the roads to greet the activist and show their support as the Activist began his fast demanding that a strong Jan Lokpal Bill be passed during the Winter Session of Parliament.
But the scenes were quite different at the MMRDA Grounds, the venue for Anna's fast. The music, the songs, the flags and the patriotism were a reminder of Anna's successful fast in the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi in August but the massive crowds seen in the capital were missing on Tuesday.
With a mere two thousand people at the venue at noon, Anna had words of appereciation for those who did manage to turn up. "I know that you all are sitting under the sun. You all have come here in such heat, leaving your work. That is why I thank all of you," he said.
Despite Anna's statement, the noticeably lesser crowd forced Team Anna to go into damage control mode. Various speakers were seen asking Mumbai to show their support for Anna.
"Delhi showed its strength, now Mumbaikars also should also come out. They can't stay at home," said Anna suporter and social activist Medha Patkar.
At 3 pm there were 4000 people at the MMRDA Grounds. The numbers peaked at 8000 by 6 pm, with people turning up after work, a figure far below Team Anna's expectations of between 30,000 and 50,000 people.
By 9pm the numbers had dwindled to 1000.
Mumbai being a working class and apolitical city could be a reason for many people to give it a miss. Moreover, it was a weekday and MMRDA Grounds is not well connected, which could have been the reason why most people kept away.
Bollywood director RamGopal Varma tweeted that Anna's was a flop show.
Working till midnight on Tuesday, the UPA did manage to get the Lokpal Bill passed in Lok Sabha, but with Anna already declaring the present draft of the bill toothless, it does not seem that the social crusader plans to back down any time soon, despite his frail health.