Anna Hazare will not vote for Kejriwal Party
CBI should be independent – Arun Jaitley
I am not a contender for PM position – Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar maintains old stance on Narendra Modi
New Delhi, India’s civil society activism is just not split wide open, but now there’s little room for reconciliation. The face of civil activism, who became the rallying point of millions of Indians hungry for change, Anna Hazare, has dropped a bombshell at the TV Today network’s conclave – Agenda Aaj Tak. He signalled that the split is irreversible.
At “Agenda Aaj Tak” Lashing out at his one-time protégé Arvind kejriwal, Anna Hazare said Kejriwal is caught in the vicious cycle of power-and-money politics and he won’t venture near him. “I will not vote for Kejriwal’s party. I prefer not cross his path. His unrelenting ambition and lust for power triggered the split. And I won’t hesitate to launch an agitation against Kejriwal if he is wrong.” Anna was speaking at a session – Ek Adhuri Kranti? (An Incomplete Revolution)
Anna is bitter that Kejriwal left him just when the campaign against corruption had taken a decisive turn. ”In 65 years, it was the first time that Indians thought that civil society could change the system and bring probity in governance. It was the turning point in our movement. And it was just then that Kejriwal betrayed us. His hunger for power forced us to part ways.”
Anna also thinks that his Jan Lokpal Bill won’t be passed by Parliament. “If the Jan Lokpal is passed in Parliament that 15 ministers will be in jail. But we will continue our campaign.”
Though Anna is bitter in his parting of ways with Kejriwal, he says nobody is an untouchable if it’s for a cause. “I did meet Ramdev. If he snaps ties with communal forces, he’s welcome into my movement.”
So will Anna’s movement remain an incomplete revolution? Hazare says he will return with vengeance. “Wait for one and half years and you will see a bigger revolution. This will be total revolution, a bigger flood than what you saw at Ramlila Maidan and Jantar Mantar.”
In the session – What should be the nation’s ideal leader?, Kapil Sibal from Congress, Arun Jaitley from BJP and Sitaram Yechury from CPM held fort.
At “Agenda Aaj Tak” Sibal made a stunning statement on allegations of political parties being hand in glove on the question of corruption. Pinned down on Digvijay’s reported statement that he’s aware of scandals in BJP, but won’t reveal, Sibal said, “Making such public statements is dangerous for democracy. Such statements should be backed by proof and it’s the responsibility of those making such allegations to place the truth in public domain.” Sibal was clearly hitting out Digvijay Singh for making unsubstantiated allegations.
Arun Jaitley also made a veiled attack on Kejriwal’s weekly exposes. He said, “Now, there’s an atmosphere of cynicism in the country when every unsubstantiated allegation becomes a scam. And this is being done without verification of facts.”
Referring to the FDI vote in Parliament, Jaitley attacked the UPA government. In a subtle attack on the heartland satraps, Mulayam and Mayawati, he said, “The fear of CBI chargesheet has forced some leaders to bail out the government in Parliament. These leades spoke against FDI in retail, but did a U-turn when it came to voting.”
Not to put on the mat, Sibal said, “It’s the same CBI which had absolved BJP leader L K Advani of charges.” Then Jaitley questioned why CBI is not an automonous body.
In the session — Jaat Par Na Paat Par, Muhar Lagegi Vikas Par, Bihar chief minister said his biggest achievement was enforce the rule of law and remove fear from the minds of the people.
“Bihar was a cause of national concern. To call oneself a Bihari was an insult. Now there’s a growing enthusiasm. Now, it’s a question of pride that has blurred caste barriers.”
Nitish clearly said, he’s not in the race for the Prime Minister’s post. “I am not aware about the BJP’s PM candidate. We will decide on support to the NDA when they announce their PM’s candidature. I am not in the race for the PM’s post. It’s the era of coalition politics. The larger party should get responsibility to lead the nation. The PM cannot be nominated and there can be no two power centres.”
Nitish refused to delve into his rocky relationship with Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. “I have spoken my mind on Modi once and I stick to it. And I don’t have the time to campaign in Gujarat.
