Thousands of protesters in major Indian cities began a fast on Wednesday evening, not sated by the Indian prime minister’s explanation of why leading anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare had been arrested the day before.
Hazare, 74, and six of his followers had been arrested on Tuesday, on the basis that their plan to maintain a hunger strike until a key piece of anti-corruption legislation passed Parliament was illegal. They were released on Wednesday after the government reached a compromise with Hazare.
The original plan of “fast unto death” was deemed illegal by the police because Hazare’s team had refused six preconditions, including one that limited the fast to three days, explained Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a speech to Parliament.
“Delhi Police came to the conclusion that Shri Anna Hazare and his supporters would commit a cognizable offense and there [could be] a breach of peace,” said the prime minister.
In a negotiated concession, the new fast started Wednesday night and will last 15 days.
The drastic protest is over the so-called Jan Lokpal Bill that is designed to stop corruption, arbitrate grievances, and protect whistle-blowers. Different versions of the bill have appeared before Parliament since 1968, but none have passed. Corruption is rife in India in all levels of government and society.
Anti-corruption watchdog organization Transparency International (TI) said that the Indian government has not been able to stop rising corruption and is instead trying to silence those who speak out against the problem, according to a statement by TI India’s Executive Director Anupama Jha.
While Hazare has proven himself a charismatic leader, the protest is not for his personality, said Partha Turaga, a representative in New Jersey of the India Against Corruption movement that is organizing the protests.
“It’s not just out of emotion. We trust him emotionally, but we also read all the drafts. We’ve seen and understood what this is all about,” said Turaga.
In his speech, Singh blamed Hazare for not approaching things in a democratic manner. “There will be opportunities for Shri Anna Hazare and others to present their views,” said the prime minister, adding that Hazare’s current path “is totally misconceived and fraught with grave consequences for our Parliamentary democracy.”
Singh acknowledged the issue of government corruption, and both the government and the protesters share a desire to see the bill passed quickly.
But they differ on the content of the bill. The version of the bill supported by protesters was drafted with input from civil society and has stronger punitive measures. The government amended that draft into another version.
One of key differences between the two is the independence of the judiciary body. In the protesters’ bill, a new anti-corruption body, called Lokpal, would monitor the judiciary. In the government’s version, the judiciary would be accountable under the Judicial Accountability Bill.
Turaga said that the protesters didn’t concern themselves with whether success was in sight but focused on whether they could make even the slightest impact.
“You’ve got to try your best; you’ve got to do the best you can, and that applies to all of us,” Turaga added.
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