Anna Hazare
Encyclopedia
Kisan Baburao Hazare (born 15 June 1937), popularly known as Anna Hazare is an Indian social activist and a prominent leader in the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement
, using nonviolent
methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi
. Hazare also contributed to the development and structuring of Ralegan Siddhi
, a village in Parner taluka
of Ahmednagar district
, Maharashtra
, India. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan
—the third-highest civilian award—by the Government of India
in 1992 for his efforts in establishing this village as a model for others.
Anna Hazare started an indefinite hunger strike
on 5 April 2011 to exert pressure on the Indian government to enact a stringent anti-corruption law as envisaged in the Jan Lokpal Bill
, for the institution of an ombudsman
with the power to deal with corruption in public places. The fast led to nation-wide protests in support of Hazare. The fast ended on 9 April 2011, a day after the government accepted Hazare's demands. The government issued a gazette notification on the formation of a joint committee, consisting of government and civil society representatives, to draft the legislation.
For the year 2011 Foreign Policy magazine
has named him among top 100 global thinkers. Anna has been ranked as the most influential person in Mumbai
by a national daily newspaper. He has faced criticism for his authoritarian views on justice, including death as punishment for corrupt public officials and his alleged support for forced vasectomies
as a method of family planning.
, near to Ahmednagar. The eldest son, with two sisters and four brothers, the later adoption of the name Anna reflects the Marathi word for "elder brother". His father worked in a pharmacy and struggled to support the family financially. In time, the family moved to their ancestral village of Ralegan Siddhi, where they owned a small amount of agricultural land. A relative took on the burden of providing Kisan with an education, taking him to Mumbai because the village had no primary school. The relative became unable financially to continue the support and Kisan's schooling ended in the Standard Seventh grade; his siblings were not schooled at all. He started selling flowers at the Dadar
railway station in Mumbai and was able eventually to own two flower shops in the city. He also became involved in vigilantism, joining groups who acted to prevent the poor from being bullied out of their shelters by thugs in the employ of landlords.
to commence emergency recruitment measures. Hazare was recruited in April 1963, despite not meeting the physical requirements, and was attested as a soldier on 16 November of that year after undertaking training at Aurangabad.
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
, Hazare was posted at the border in the Khem Karan sector. He was the sole survivor of an enemy attack - variously claimed to have been a bomb, an aerial assault and an exchange of fire at the border - while he was driving a truck. The experiences of war time, coupled with the poverty from which he had come, affected him. He had considered suicide at one point but now turned to pondering the meaning of life and death. He has said of the truck attack that "[It] sent me thinking. I felt that God wanted me to stay alive for some reason. I was re-born in the battlefield of Khem Karan. And I decided to dedicate my new life to serving people." He spent his spare time reading the works of Swami Vivekananda
, Gandhi, and Vinoba Bhave
. In a blog post, Hazare expressed his views on Kashmir
by saying that it was his "active conviction that Kashmir is an integral part of India" and that if required once again for service, he would remain "ready to take part in war against Pakistan."
During the mid-1970s, Hazare survived a road accident while driving for the army. He interpreted his survival as a further sign that his life was intended to be dedicated to the service of the community. Despite subsequent allegations that he had deserted from the army, official records show that he was honourably discharged in 1975 after completing his 12 years of service.
Although most of the villagers owned some land, cultivation was extremely difficult due to the rocky ground preventing retention of the monsoon rains; this situation had not been assisted by a gradual deterioration as trees were cut down, erosion spread and droughts were also experienced. The shortage of water also led to disease because conditions became unsanitary and water was re-used for multiple purposes. The economy of the village had become reliant on illegal manufacture and sale of alcohol, a product to which many of the villagers had themselves become addicted. Many inhabitants were at the mercy of moneylenders in order to survive, and those lenders would charge monthly interest rates of as much as 10%. Crime and violence (including domestic violence) had become commonplace, while education and employment opportunities were poor.
Hazare was relatively wealthy because of the gratuity from his army service. He set about using that money to restore a run-down, vandalised village temple as a focal point for the community. Some were able to respond with small financial donations but many other villagers, particularly among the elderly, donated their labour in a process that became known as shramdaan. Some youths also became involved in the work and these he organised into a Tarun Mandal (Youth Association). One of the works of Vivekananda which he had read was Call to the youth for nation building.
When some villagers were found to be drunk they were tied to pillars and then flogged
, sometimes personally by Hazare. He justified this punishment by stating that “rural India was a harsh society”, and that
Hazare appealed to the government of Maharashtra to bring in a law whereby prohibition would come into force in a village if 25% of the women in the village demanded it. In 2009 the state government amended the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 to reflect this.
It was decided to ban the sale of tobacco, cigarettes, and beedi
es (an unfiltered cigarette where the tobacco is rolled in tendu
also known as Diospyros melanoxylon
leaves instead of paper) in the village. In order to implement this resolution, the youth group performed a unique "Holi
" ceremony twenty two years ago. The festival of Holi is celebrated as a symbolic burning of evil. The youth group brought all the tobacco, cigarettes, and beedies from the shops in the village and burnt them in a Holi fire. Tobacco, cigarettes, or beedies are no longer sold.
to the bank. In times of need, farmers could borrow the grain, but they had to return the same amount of grain they borrowed, plus an additional quintal as an interest. This ensured that nobody in the village ever went hungry or had to borrow money to buy grain. This also prevented distress sales of grain at lower prices at harvest time.
in the area. These efforts solved the problem of water scarcity in the village and made irrigation possible.
Cultivation of water-intensive crops like sugar cane was banned. Crops such as pulses, oil-seeds, and certain cash crops with low water requirements were grown. The farmers started growing high-yield varieties of crop and the cropping pattern of the village was changed. Hazare has helped farmers of more than 70 villages in drought-prone regions in the state of Maharashtra since 1975. When Hazare came in Ralegan Siddhi in 1975 only 70 acres (28.3 ha) of land was irrigated, Hazare converted it into about 2500 acres (1,011.7 ha).
and Parner
to pursue higher education, but due to socioeconomic conditions, girls could not do the same and were limited to primary education. Hazare, along with the youth of Ralegan Siddhi, worked to increase literacy rates and education levels. In 1976 they started a pre-school and a high school in 1979. The villagers formed a charitable trust
, the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, which was registered in 1979.
have been largely eliminated by Ralegan Siddhi villagers. It was Hazare's moral leadership that motivated and inspired the villagers to shun untouchability and caste discrimination. Marriages of Dalits are held as part of community marriage program together with those of other castes. The Dalits have been integrated into the social and economic life of the village. The upper caste villagers have built houses for the lower caste Dalits by shramdaan and helped to repay their loans to free them from their indebtedness.
people have started celebrating marriages collectively. Joint feasts are held, where the expenses are further reduced by the Tarun Mandal taking responsibility for cooking and serving the food. The vessels, the loudspeaker system, the mandap, and the decorations have also been bought by the Tarun Mandal members belonging to the oppressed castes. From 1976 to 1986, 424 marriages have been held under this system.
as an important democratic institution for collective decision making in the villages of India. Hazare campaigned between 1998 and 2006 for amending the Gram Sabha Act, so that the villagers have a say in the development works in their village. The state government initially refused, but eventually gave in due to public pressure. As per the amendments, it is mandatory to seek the sanction of the Gram Sabha (an assembly of all village adults, and not just the few elected representatives in the gram panchayat) for expenditures on development works in the village.
In May 1997 Hazare protested against alleged malpractices in the purchase of powerlooms by the Vasantrao Naik Bhathya Vimukt Jhtra Governor P. C. Alexander
. On 4 November 1997 Gholap filed a defamation suit against Hazare for accusing him of corruption. He was arrested in April 1998 and was released on a personal bond of . On 9 September 1998 Hazare was imprisoned in the Yerawada Jail to serve a three-month sentence mandated by the Mumbai Metropolitan Court. The sentencing caused leaders of all political parties except the BJP and the Shiv Sena came in support of him.
Later, due to public protests, the Government of Maharashtra ordered his release from the jail. After release, Hazare wrote a letter to then chief minister Manohar Joshi
demanding Gholap's removal for his role in alleged malpractices in the Awami Merchant Bank. Gholap resigned from the cabinet on 27 April 1999.
In 2003 corruption charges were raised by Hazare against four NCP ministers of the Congress
-NCP
government. He started his fast unto death on 9 August 2003. He ended his fast on 17 August 2003 after then chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde formed a one-man commission headed by the retired justice P. B. Sawant
to probe his charges. The P. B. Sawant commission report, submitted on 23 February 2005, indicted Sureshdada Jain
, Nawab Malik, and Padmasinh Patil
. The report exonerated Vijaykumar Gavit. Suresh Jain and Nawab Malik resigned from the cabinet in March 2005.
Three trusts headed by Anna Hazare were also indicted in the P. B. Sawant commission report. spent by the Hind Swaraj Trust for Anna Hazare's birthday celebrations was concluded by the commission as illegal and amounting to a corrupt practice, though Abhay Firodia, an industrialist subsequently donated to the trust for that purpose. The setting apart of 11 acres of its land by the trust in favour of the Zilla Parishad
without obtaining permission from the charity commissioner was concluded as a case of maladministration. The commission also concluded that the maintenance of accounts of the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Janandolan Trust after 10 November 2001 had not been according to the rules and spent by the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Trust for renovating a temple was in contravention to its object of imparting secular education.
, enacted by the Union Government. It also ensured that the President of India assented to this new Act.
On 20 July 2006 the Union Cabinet amended the Right to Information Act 2005 to exclude the file noting by the government officials from its purview. Hazare began his fast unto death on 9 August 2006 in Alandi
against the proposed amendment. He ended his fast on 19 August 2006, after the government agreed to change its earlier decision.
In 2007 Maharashtra Government rolled out the grain-based liquor policy aimed to encourage production of liquor from food grain in the light of the rising demand for spirit – used for industrial purposes and potable liquor and Issue 36 licenses for distilleries for making alcohol from food grains.
Anna Hazare opposed the governments policy to promote making liquor from food grains in Maharashtra. He argued the government that Maharashtra is a food-deficit State and there was shortage of food grains and it is not logical to promote producing liquor from food grains. One of the State ministers Laxman Dhoble said in his speech that those opposing the decision to allow use of food grains for the production of liquor are anti-farmers and those people should be beaten up with sugarcane sticks. Hazare initiated fast at Shirdi, but on 21 March 2010 government promised to review the policy and Anna ended his 5 day long fast. But the government later granted 36 licences and grants of (per litre of alcohol) to politicians or their sons who were directly or indirectly engaged in making alcohol from foodgrains. Some of the main beneficiaries of these licences includes Amit and Dheeraj Deshmukh, sons of Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh
, Bharatiya Janata Party
leader Gopinath Munde
's daughter Pankaja Palwe and her husband Charudatta Palwe, sons-in-law of P.V. Narasimha Rao, Rajya Sabha MP Govindrao Adik. The government approved the proposal for food grain-based alcohol production in spite of stiff opposition from the planning and finance departments saying there is a huge demand in other countries for food grain made liquor in comparison with that of molasses
. Anna filed a Public Interest Litigation
against the Government of Maharashtra
for allowing food-grains for manufacturing liquor in the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court
. On 20 August 2009 Maharashtra government stopped the policy. However, distilleries sanctioned before that date and those who started production within two years of sanction were entitled for subsidies.
On 5 May 2011 court refused to hear a Public Interest Litigation saying "not before me, this is a court of law, not a court of justice" as a reason of not hearing the plea. One of Principal Secretary in Maharashtra state C.S. Sangeet Rao, enlighten that there is no law exists to scrap these licences as this is a government policy.
movement for passing a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal
(ombudsman
) bill in the Indian Parliament as conceived in the Jan Lokpal Bill
(People's Ombudsman Bill). The Jan Lokpal Bill was drafted earlier by N. Santosh Hegde, former justice of the Supreme Court of India
and Lokayukta
of Karnataka
, Prashant Bhushan
, a senior lawyer in the Supreme Court and Arvind Kejriwal
, a social activist along with members of the India Against Corruption
movement. This draft bill incorporated more stringent provisions and wider power to the Lokpal (Ombudsman) than the draft Lokpal bill prepared by the government in 2010. These include placing "the Prime Minister
within the ambit of the proposed lokpal’s powers".
on 5 April 2011 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi
to press for the demand to form a joint committee of the representatives of the Government and the civil society to draft a stronger anti-corruption bill with stronger penal actions and more independence to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Ombudsmen in the states), after his demand was rejected by the Prime Minister of India
Manmohan Singh
. He stated, "I will fast until Jan Lokpal Bill is passed".
The movement attracted attention in the media, and thousands of supporters. Almost 150 people reportedly joined Hazare in his fast. Social activists, including Medha Patkar
, Arvind Kejriwal
, former IPS
officer Kiran Bedi
, and Jayaprakash Narayan
lent their support to Hazare's hunger strike and anti-corruption campaign. People have shown support in internet social media such as Twitter and Facebook. In addition to spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
, Swami Ramdev
, Swami Agnivesh
and former Indian cricketer Kapil Dev
, many celebrities showed their public support through Twitter. Hazare decided that he would not allow any politician to sit with him in this movement. Politicians like Uma Bharti
and Om Prakash Chautala
were shooed away by the protesters when they came to visit the site where the protest was taking place. On 6 April 2011 Sharad Pawar
resigned from the group of ministers formed for reviewing the draft Lokpal bill 2010.
Protests spread to Bangalore
, Mumbai
, Chennai
, Ahmedabad
, Guwahati
, Shillong
, Aizawl
and a number of other cities in India.
on formation of a joint committee. It accepted the formula that there be a politician Chairman and an activist, non-politician Co-Chairman. According to the notification, Pranab Mukherjee
will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan
will be the co-chairman. “The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of the civil society. The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P. Chidambaram
, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M. Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal
, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs. The five nominees of the civil society are Anna Hazare, N. Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan
Senior Advocate, Prashant Bhushan
, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal
.
On the morning of 9 April 2011 Hazare ended his 98-hour hunger strike. He addressed the people and set a deadline of 15 August 2011 to pass the Lokpal Bill in the Indian Parliament.
Anna Hazare said that if the bill does not pass he will call for a mass nation-wide agitation. He called his movement as "second struggle for independence
" and he will continue the fight.
s under the purview of the Lokpal in the draft bill. On 31 May 2011, Pranab Mukherjee, chairman of the joint drafting committee sent a letter to the chief ministers of all states and the leaders of the political parties seeking their opinion on six contentious issues in the proposed Lokpal Bill, including whether to bring the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts under the purview of the proposed law. But the civil society members of the drafting committee considered that keeping the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts out of the purview of the Lokpal would be a violation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption
.
Anna Hazare and other civil society members decided to boycott the meeting of the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee scheduled on 6 June 2011 in protest against the forcible eviction of Swami Ramdev
and his followers by the Delhi Police
from Ramlila Maidan
on 5 June 2011, while they were on hunger strike against the issues of black money and corruption and doubting seriousness of the government in taking measures to eradicate corruption.
On 6 June 2011, the members of the civil society of the joint Lokpal bill drafting committee in New Delhi sent a letter to Pranab Mukherjee, the chairman of the committee, explaining reasons for their absence at the meeting and also asked government to make its stand public on the contentious issues related to the proposed draft legislation. They also decided that the future meetings will be attended only if they were telecast live. On 8 June 2011 at Rajghat, describing his movement as the second freedom struggle, Anna criticised the Government for trying to discredit the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee and threatened to go on indefinite fast again from 16 August 2011 if the Lokpal Bill is not passed by then. He also criticised the Government for putting hurdles in the drafting of a strong Lokpal Bill and its attempts to malign the civil society members of the joint Lokpal panel.
, and told him his decision to go on an indefinite fast from 16 August 2011 at Jantar Mantar if the government introduced its own version of the bill in Parliament without taking suggestions from civil society members.
Within twenty four hours of cabinet's endorsement of a weak Lokpal Bill, over ten thousand peoples from across the country sent faxes directly to the government demanding a bill with stronger provisions. The Mumbai Taxi Men’s Union, comprises over 30,000 taxi drivers have extended their full support to Hazare’s fast by keeping all taxis off the roads on 16 August 2011. Lawyers of Allahabad High Court
described Lokpal Bill proposed by the government as against the interest of the country and pledged their support to Hazare by hunger strike at Allahabad on 16 August 2011. On 30 July 2011 Vishwa Hindu Parishad supported Hazare's indefinite fast by saying movement for an effective anti-corruption ombudsman needs the backing of people.
On 1 August, Public interest litigation
was filed in the Supreme Court of India
by Hemant Patil, a Maharashtra-based social worker and businessman, to restrain Hazare from going on his proposed indefinite fast. The petitioner demanded to prohibit the fast alleging that Hazare's demands are unconstitutional and amount to interference in legislative process.
to Jantar Mantar.
Along with Hazare, other key members of the India Against Corruption
movement including Arvind Kejriwal
, Shanti Bhushan
, Kiran Bedi
and Manish Sisodia
were also detained from different locations. It was reported that about 1,300 supporters were detained in Delhi. Media also reported that the arrest sparked off protests with people courting arrests in different parts of the country. The opposition parties in the country came out against the arrest, likening the government action to the emergency imposed in the country in 1975. Both the houses of Parliament were adjourned over the issue.
Eventually, after being kept in judicial detention for just four hours, he was released unconditionally without any bail bond by the magistrate on a request by the police, but Hazare
refused to leave Tihar Jail
. He demanded an unconditional permission from the police to observe a fast at Ramlila Maidan (Ground) in support of the Jan Lokpal bill and refused to leave the jail. Hazare continued his fast inside the jail and refused to leave the jail though the jail authorities had technically released him.
After his arrest, Anna Hazare received support from people across the country. There were reports of "nearly 570 demonstrations and protests by Anna supporters across the country" against the government's imprisonment of Hazare and others. Due to the nationwide protests of millions, the government agreed to allow him to begin a public hunger strike of fifteen days. After talks with public authorities, Hazare decided to hold his protest at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi. On 20 August 2011 Hazare "left the Tihar Jail for the Ramlila Grounds". Hazare promised reporters "he would fight to the 'last breath' until the government gets his team's Jan Lokpal Bill passed in this session of Parliament, which ends on 8 September."
confirmed that Maharashtra Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Umesh Chandra Sarangi (who has a history of mediating between Hazare and government officials) was meeting with the social activist again "to find points of consensus and defuse the situation". On 21 August 2011 "tens of thousands" came to Ramlila Maidan to support Hazare as he sat on an elevated platform. It was reported that Hazare at that point had "lost more than seven pounds since beginning his fast", despite this he stated "'I will not withdraw my hunger strike until the Jan Lokpal bill is passed in the Parliament. I can die but I will not bend.'" Hazare ended his fast on 28 August 2011, after the Indian Government had passed the resolution for the Lokpal Bill unanimously,
He was admitted to Medanta Medicity, Gurgaon
for post-fast care. He had lost 7.5 kg and was very dehydrated after the 288 hour long fast.
declared that the "I am Anna" topi should be used as a deterrence method whenever someone asked for a bribe. She went to say that the topi should be always kept in one's bag and whenever anybody ask for a bribe, the topi should be shown to them.
in the electronic voting machines during the Indian elections. The "None of the above (NOTA)" is a ballot option that allows an electorate to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in an electoral system, in case of non-availability of any candidate of his choice, as his Right to Reject. Soon, the Chief Election Commissioner of India Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi supported Hazare's demand for the electoral reforms.
from 10 am to 6 pm at Rajghat
to protest against the midnight crackdown of 5 June 2011 by the Delhi Police
on Swami Ramdev’s fast at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi. The fast was initially planned to be held at Jantar Mantar, but the venue was shifted after the denial of permission by the Delhi police. Anna Hazare held the Prime Minister of India responsible for the atrocities and termed the police action as a blot on humanity and an attempt to stifle democracy. According to one of the Anna's young supporters, the large presence of youths in the protest was due to their support to his use of nonviolence
means of protest similar to Gandhi.
, the chief minister of Gujarat for his efforts on rural development along with Nitish Kumar
, chief minister of Bihar
, saying that the same should be emulated by the chief ministers of all states. Subsequently, Modi wrote an open letter to him, hailing him as a Gandhian and anti-corruption activist while Digvijay Singh, the General Secretary of the Congress party, criticised him for his comment. In May 2011, Hazare, during his visit to Gujarat, changed his view and criticised Modi for rampant corruption by Government officials in Gujarat. He urged Modi to appoint a Lokayukta
in Gujarat. He also commented that the media had projected an incorrect image of Vibrant Gujarat
, very different from the prevalent situation.
from Pune, Abhijit Vaidya – founder of Arogya Sena, a non-governmental agency active in public health, disaster management and social campaigns – claimed that he was informed by the close associates of Anna Hazare during a fast in Ralegan-Siddhi, that he was given glucose
and electrolyte
solutions during a fast. Hazare and his associates refused to comment on the allegation.
Two days ahead of Hazare's proposed indefinite fast on 16 August 2011, the ruling party of India, the Indian National Congress
, launched an attack on him alleging that "the moral core of Hazare has been ripped apart" by the Justice P B Sawant Commission.
In response to this allegaton, Hazare's lawyer Milind Pawar, claimed that the commission had remarked about "irregularities" in the accounts, but had not held him guilty of any "corrupt" practices.
Pawar said that on 16 June 1998, a celebration was organised to facilitate Hazare on winning an award from a US based NGO and it coincided with his 61st birthday. The trust spent Rs 2.18 lakh for the function. Abhay Phirodia, a Pune-based industrialist, who took the initiative to organise this function donated an amount of Rs 2,48,950 to the trust by cheque soon after the function.
Hazare himself responded to the allegation by daring the government to file a First Information Report
(FIR) against him to prove the charges.
by writer and historian Ramchandra Guha state that that environmental journalist Mukul Sharma found that that Anna Hazare forced the Dalit families in Ralegan Siddhi to adopt a vegetarian diet, and that those who violated the decree were tied to a post and flogged. Mukul Sharma also found that no panchayat elections have been held in the village for the past two decades, and that no campaigning was allowed during state and national elections, upon the instructions of Anna Hazare.
Dalit
columnists like Chandrabhan Prasad
have opined that the movement initiated by Anna Hazare against corruption and for the Jan Lokpal bill is taking us to a situation of rejecting representative democracy and also alleged that this movement is an upper-caste uprising against India's political democracy. He also claimed that the centralisation such huge powers in Lokapal, which is a non-elected entity will lead the democratic setup to a very dangerous situation.
Dalit activist Kancha Ilaiah
also commented in a similar fashion, that "The Anna movement is an anti-social justice, manuvadi movement. The Dalits, tribals, OBCs and minorities have nothing to do with it. We oppose it." Another activist Anoop Kheri claimed that "The language, symbols used by the movement clearly reflects its upper caste Hindu
nature, a very rightwing Hindu patriotism is being used to get the entire country against corruption. And as a dalit, I have a problem with it."
There was also an allegation that an RTI activist was denied permission to protest by having a fast-unto-death at Ralegan Siddhi
, the grama sabha stating that the reason was that only Anna Hazare can hold such fasts in his village.
During his protest against corruption, another activist, Udit Raj
, who was denied permission to protest against Anna Hazare, warned that succumbing to Hazare's demands, which he claimed were against the parliamentary processes will set a dangerous trend rendering the backward classes more vulnerable, as such mass mobilisations coercing the government with a "set of solutions" against constitutional processes could also be used against affirmative action
, and is a threat to democracy.
Later, it came to light that poor dalits had been paid money of up to 200 each, exploiting their desperation. The participants said that they were asked to shout slogans against Anna, although the organizers have denied it. Some protesters said that they had been told that it was a pro-Anna protest, but feel cheated after realising that it was against Anna hazare.
accused Hazare in a newspaper article of being nonsecular. She questioned his secular credentials pointing out Hazare's "support for Raj Thackeray
's Marathi Manoos xenophobia
and (has praised) the 'development model' of Gujarat's CM who oversaw the 2002 pogrom against Muslims". The website of the newspaper published many responses to her article and these were mostly critical of her views. Activist Medha Patkar
also strongly criticised Roy, saying that her views were misplaced.
Hazare has in the past stood in firm opposition to the Shiv Sena and BJP governments in Maharashtra. Activist and writer Asghar Ali Engineer in an EPW article on Communalism
and Communal Violence reported,
Hazare was accused of working for RSS and BJP's behest, and against Muslims by cleric Bukhari of the Jama Masjid. Bhukhari was subsequently criticised for being a Royal Imam and the communal comments being his personal views which did not represent the view of ordinary Muslims.
and higher-ranking Leader of Nationalist Congress Party
from Osmanabad
, and also a prime accused and conspirator in the 2006 murder case of Indian National Congress
leader Pawanraje Nimabalkar.
The conspiracy to kill Hazare was exposed when Parasmal Jain, an accused in the Nimbalkar murder case, in his written confession before a magistrate said that Padamsinh Bajirao Patil had paid a sum of to murder Nimbalkar, and also offered him supari (contract killing sum) to kill Anna Hazare. After this written confession, Anna appealed to the state government of Maharashtra to lodge a separate First Information Report ( FIR )
against Padamsinh Bajirao Patil for conspiring to murder him but the government did not take any action in this regard. Anna Hazare decided to lodge a complaint himself and on 26 September 2009, he lodged complaint at Parner
police station of Ahmednagar District in Maharashtra against the Nationalist Congress Party
(NCP) MP Padamsinha Patil for conspiring to eliminate him. Padamsinh Patil approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail but on 14 October 2009, the Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court
rejected the anticipatory bail
application of Padamsinh Patil in connection with a complaint filed by Anna after observing that there is a prima facie
evidence against him.
Padmasinh Patil appealed for an anticipatory bail in Supreme Court of India
which the court rejected on 6 November 2009. On 11 November 2009 Padmasinh Patil surrendered before the sessions court in Latur
as per a directive of the Supreme Court and was sent to judicial remand for 14 days. On 16 December 2009 Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court granted bail to him. , the verdict is pending.
since 1975. On 16 April 2011, he declared his bank balance of and as money in hand. He owns 0.07 hectares of family land in Ralegan Siddhi, which is being used by his brothers. Two other pieces of land donated to him by the Indian Army and by a villager have been donated by him for village use. His only income is a pension he receives from the Indian Army.
2011 Indian anti-corruption movement
The 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement is a series of ongoing demonstrations and protests across India intended to establish strong legislation and enforcement against endemic political corruption...
, using nonviolent
Nonviolence
Nonviolence has two meanings. It can refer, first, to a general philosophy of abstention from violence because of moral or religious principle It can refer to the behaviour of people using nonviolent action Nonviolence has two (closely related) meanings. (1) It can refer, first, to a general...
methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
. Hazare also contributed to the development and structuring of Ralegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi is a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra state in western India. It is located at a distance of 87 km from Pune. The village has an area of 982.31 ha . It is considered a model of environmental conservation. The village has carried out programs like...
, a village in Parner taluka
Parner taluka
Parner taluka , is a taluka in Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Geography:-Area:Following are area details -Population:The table below shows population of the taluka by sex...
of Ahmednagar district
Ahmednagar district
Ahmednagar district is the largest district of Maharashtra state in western India. The historical Ahmednagar city is the headquarters of the district. Ahmednagar was the seat of the Ahmednagar Sultanate of late medieval period . This district is also known for the towns of Shirdi associated with...
, Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, India. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
—the third-highest civilian award—by the Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
in 1992 for his efforts in establishing this village as a model for others.
Anna Hazare started an indefinite hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
on 5 April 2011 to exert pressure on the Indian government to enact a stringent anti-corruption law as envisaged in the Jan Lokpal Bill
Jan Lokpal Bill
The Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the citizens' ombudsman bill, is a proposed independent anti-corruption law in India. Anti-corruption social activists proposed it as a more effective improvement to the original Lokpal bill, which is currently being proposed by the Government of India.The...
, for the institution of an ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
with the power to deal with corruption in public places. The fast led to nation-wide protests in support of Hazare. The fast ended on 9 April 2011, a day after the government accepted Hazare's demands. The government issued a gazette notification on the formation of a joint committee, consisting of government and civil society representatives, to draft the legislation.
For the year 2011 Foreign Policy magazine
Foreign Policy
Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P. Huntington and Warren Demian Manshel.Originally, the magazine was a quarterly...
has named him among top 100 global thinkers. Anna has been ranked as the most influential person in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
by a national daily newspaper. He has faced criticism for his authoritarian views on justice, including death as punishment for corrupt public officials and his alleged support for forced vasectomies
Vasectomy
Vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization and/or permanent birth control. During the procedure, the vasa deferentia of a man are severed, and then tied/sealed in a manner such to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream...
as a method of family planning.
Early life
Kisan Hazare was born on 15 June 1937 (some sources say 1940) in BhingarBhingar
Bhingar is a census town in Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Legend behind name:There is a legend that Bhringu rishi did tapsya here on a hillock where a temple is erected in his honour.The name Bhingar is derived from the sage....
, near to Ahmednagar. The eldest son, with two sisters and four brothers, the later adoption of the name Anna reflects the Marathi word for "elder brother". His father worked in a pharmacy and struggled to support the family financially. In time, the family moved to their ancestral village of Ralegan Siddhi, where they owned a small amount of agricultural land. A relative took on the burden of providing Kisan with an education, taking him to Mumbai because the village had no primary school. The relative became unable financially to continue the support and Kisan's schooling ended in the Standard Seventh grade; his siblings were not schooled at all. He started selling flowers at the Dadar
Dadar
Dadar is a place in Mumbai, and is also a railway station on both the Western and Central lines of the Mumbai Suburban Railway network. Dadar is situated in the heart of Mumbai, and Dadar station is the only railway station common to both the Central and Western lines...
railway station in Mumbai and was able eventually to own two flower shops in the city. He also became involved in vigilantism, joining groups who acted to prevent the poor from being bullied out of their shelters by thugs in the employ of landlords.
Military service
The Indo-China War of 1962 caused the Indian ArmyIndian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
to commence emergency recruitment measures. Hazare was recruited in April 1963, despite not meeting the physical requirements, and was attested as a soldier on 16 November of that year after undertaking training at Aurangabad.
During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. This conflict became known as the Second Kashmir War fought by India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir, the first having been fought in 1947...
, Hazare was posted at the border in the Khem Karan sector. He was the sole survivor of an enemy attack - variously claimed to have been a bomb, an aerial assault and an exchange of fire at the border - while he was driving a truck. The experiences of war time, coupled with the poverty from which he had come, affected him. He had considered suicide at one point but now turned to pondering the meaning of life and death. He has said of the truck attack that "[It] sent me thinking. I felt that God wanted me to stay alive for some reason. I was re-born in the battlefield of Khem Karan. And I decided to dedicate my new life to serving people." He spent his spare time reading the works of Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...
, Gandhi, and Vinoba Bhave
Vinoba Bhave
Vinoba Bhave , born Vinayak Narahari Bhave often called Acharya , was an Indian advocate of nonviolence and human rights. He is best known for the Bhoodan Andolan...
. In a blog post, Hazare expressed his views on Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
by saying that it was his "active conviction that Kashmir is an integral part of India" and that if required once again for service, he would remain "ready to take part in war against Pakistan."
During the mid-1970s, Hazare survived a road accident while driving for the army. He interpreted his survival as a further sign that his life was intended to be dedicated to the service of the community. Despite subsequent allegations that he had deserted from the army, official records show that he was honourably discharged in 1975 after completing his 12 years of service.
Transformation of Ralegan Siddhi
Hazare returned to Ralegan Siddhi, a village described by Satpathy and Mehta as being then "one of the many villages of India plagued by acute poverty, deprivation, a fragile ecosystem, neglect and hopelessness."Although most of the villagers owned some land, cultivation was extremely difficult due to the rocky ground preventing retention of the monsoon rains; this situation had not been assisted by a gradual deterioration as trees were cut down, erosion spread and droughts were also experienced. The shortage of water also led to disease because conditions became unsanitary and water was re-used for multiple purposes. The economy of the village had become reliant on illegal manufacture and sale of alcohol, a product to which many of the villagers had themselves become addicted. Many inhabitants were at the mercy of moneylenders in order to survive, and those lenders would charge monthly interest rates of as much as 10%. Crime and violence (including domestic violence) had become commonplace, while education and employment opportunities were poor.
Hazare was relatively wealthy because of the gratuity from his army service. He set about using that money to restore a run-down, vandalised village temple as a focal point for the community. Some were able to respond with small financial donations but many other villagers, particularly among the elderly, donated their labour in a process that became known as shramdaan. Some youths also became involved in the work and these he organised into a Tarun Mandal (Youth Association). One of the works of Vivekananda which he had read was Call to the youth for nation building.
Prohibition of alcohol
Hazare and the youth group decided to take up the issue of alcoholism as a means to drive a process of reform. At a meeting conducted in the temple, the villagers resolved to close down liquor dens and ban alcohol in the village. Since these resolutions were made in the temple, they became, in a sense, religious commitments. Over thirty liquor brewing units were closed by their owners voluntarily. Those who did not succumb to social pressure were forced to close down their businesses when the youth group smashed up their liquor dens. The owners could not complain as their businesses were illegal.When some villagers were found to be drunk they were tied to pillars and then flogged
Flagellation
Flagellation or flogging is the act of methodically beating or whipping the human body. Specialised implements for it include rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails and the sjambok...
, sometimes personally by Hazare. He justified this punishment by stating that “rural India was a harsh society”, and that
Hazare appealed to the government of Maharashtra to bring in a law whereby prohibition would come into force in a village if 25% of the women in the village demanded it. In 2009 the state government amended the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 to reflect this.
It was decided to ban the sale of tobacco, cigarettes, and beedi
Beedi
A beedi is a thin, South Asian cigarette filled with tobacco flake and wrapped in a tendu leaf tied with a string at one end.The word comes from beeda, Marwari for a leaf wrapped in betel nuts, herbs, and condiments....
es (an unfiltered cigarette where the tobacco is rolled in tendu
Diospyros melanoxylon
Coromandel Ebony or East Indian Ebony is a species of flowering tree in the family Ebenaceae that is native to India and Sri Lanka....
also known as Diospyros melanoxylon
Diospyros melanoxylon
Coromandel Ebony or East Indian Ebony is a species of flowering tree in the family Ebenaceae that is native to India and Sri Lanka....
leaves instead of paper) in the village. In order to implement this resolution, the youth group performed a unique "Holi
Holi
Holi , is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United...
" ceremony twenty two years ago. The festival of Holi is celebrated as a symbolic burning of evil. The youth group brought all the tobacco, cigarettes, and beedies from the shops in the village and burnt them in a Holi fire. Tobacco, cigarettes, or beedies are no longer sold.
Grain Bank
In 1980, the Grain Bank was started by him at the temple, with the objective of providing food security to needful farmers during times of drought or crop failure. Rich farmers, or those with surplus grain production, could donate a quintalQuintal
Quintal may refer to:* Quintal , a unit of mass* Quartal and quintal harmony in music* Quintal, Haute-Savoie, a commune of the Haute-Savoie département in France* Stéphane Quintal, NHL ice hockey player...
to the bank. In times of need, farmers could borrow the grain, but they had to return the same amount of grain they borrowed, plus an additional quintal as an interest. This ensured that nobody in the village ever went hungry or had to borrow money to buy grain. This also prevented distress sales of grain at lower prices at harvest time.
Watershed development programme
Ralegan is located in the foothills, so Hazare persuaded villagers to construct a watershed embankment and associated works to stop water and allow it to percolate and increase the ground water level and improve irrigationIrrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
in the area. These efforts solved the problem of water scarcity in the village and made irrigation possible.
Cultivation of water-intensive crops like sugar cane was banned. Crops such as pulses, oil-seeds, and certain cash crops with low water requirements were grown. The farmers started growing high-yield varieties of crop and the cropping pattern of the village was changed. Hazare has helped farmers of more than 70 villages in drought-prone regions in the state of Maharashtra since 1975. When Hazare came in Ralegan Siddhi in 1975 only 70 acres (28.3 ha) of land was irrigated, Hazare converted it into about 2500 acres (1,011.7 ha).
Milk production
As a secondary occupation, milk production was promoted in Ralegan Siddhi. Purchase of new cattle and improvement of the existing breed with the help of artificial insemination and timely guidance and assistance by a veterinarian resulted in an improvement in the cattle stock, increasing production of milk. Crossbred cows are replacing local ones which gave a lower milk yield.Education
In 1932, Ralegan Siddhi got its first formal school, a single classroom primary school. In 1962, the villagers added more classrooms through community volunteer efforts. By 1971, out of an estimated population of 1,209, only 30.43% were literate (72 women and 290 men). Boys moved to the nearby towns of ShirurShirur, Maharashtra
Shirur is a municipal council in the Pune district of the Indian state of Maharashtra.Shirur is located on the boundaries of the Pune and Ahmednagar districts on the banks of the River Ghod. The town is also known as Ghodnadi to distinguish it from similar places with the same name...
and Parner
Parner
Parner , is an historic city in Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra, India. 'Parner' was named after Rishi Parashar, whose son Maharishi Ved Vyas wrote famous epic "Mahabharat". Parner is at height about 600–900 meters from sea Level...
to pursue higher education, but due to socioeconomic conditions, girls could not do the same and were limited to primary education. Hazare, along with the youth of Ralegan Siddhi, worked to increase literacy rates and education levels. In 1976 they started a pre-school and a high school in 1979. The villagers formed a charitable trust
Charitable trust
A charitable trust is an irrevocable trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organization".-United States:...
, the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, which was registered in 1979.
Removal of untouchability
The social barriers and discrimination that existed due to the caste system in IndiaCaste system in India
The Indian caste system is a system of social stratification and social restriction in India in which communities are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups called Jātis....
have been largely eliminated by Ralegan Siddhi villagers. It was Hazare's moral leadership that motivated and inspired the villagers to shun untouchability and caste discrimination. Marriages of Dalits are held as part of community marriage program together with those of other castes. The Dalits have been integrated into the social and economic life of the village. The upper caste villagers have built houses for the lower caste Dalits by shramdaan and helped to repay their loans to free them from their indebtedness.
Collective marriages
Most rural poor get into a debt trap as they incur heavy expenses at the time of marriage of their daughter or son. It is an undesirable practice but has almost become a social obligation in India. Ralegan'sRalegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi is a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra state in western India. It is located at a distance of 87 km from Pune. The village has an area of 982.31 ha . It is considered a model of environmental conservation. The village has carried out programs like...
people have started celebrating marriages collectively. Joint feasts are held, where the expenses are further reduced by the Tarun Mandal taking responsibility for cooking and serving the food. The vessels, the loudspeaker system, the mandap, and the decorations have also been bought by the Tarun Mandal members belonging to the oppressed castes. From 1976 to 1986, 424 marriages have been held under this system.
Gram Sabha
The Gandhian philosophy on rural development considers the Gram SabhaGram panchayat
Gram panchayats are local self-governments at the village or small town level in India. As of 2002 there were about 265,000 gram panchayats in India. The gram panchayat is the foundation of the Panchayat System. A gram panchayat can be set up in villages with minimum population of 300...
as an important democratic institution for collective decision making in the villages of India. Hazare campaigned between 1998 and 2006 for amending the Gram Sabha Act, so that the villagers have a say in the development works in their village. The state government initially refused, but eventually gave in due to public pressure. As per the amendments, it is mandatory to seek the sanction of the Gram Sabha (an assembly of all village adults, and not just the few elected representatives in the gram panchayat) for expenditures on development works in the village.
Anti-corruption protests in Maharashtra
In 1991 Hazare launched the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Aandolan (BVJA) (People's Movement against Corruption), a popular movement to fight against corruption in Ralegaon Siddhi. In the same year he protested against the collusion between 40 forest officials and timber merchants. This protest resulted in the transfer and suspension of these officials.In May 1997 Hazare protested against alleged malpractices in the purchase of powerlooms by the Vasantrao Naik Bhathya Vimukt Jhtra Governor P. C. Alexander
P. C. Alexander
Padinjarethalakal Cherian Alexander of Mavelikkera, India was an Indian politician and civil servant who served as the Governor of Tamil Nadu from 1988 to 1990 and as the Governor of Maharashtra from 1993 to 2002. He was considered as a candidate for the post of the President of India in 2002...
. On 4 November 1997 Gholap filed a defamation suit against Hazare for accusing him of corruption. He was arrested in April 1998 and was released on a personal bond of . On 9 September 1998 Hazare was imprisoned in the Yerawada Jail to serve a three-month sentence mandated by the Mumbai Metropolitan Court. The sentencing caused leaders of all political parties except the BJP and the Shiv Sena came in support of him.
Later, due to public protests, the Government of Maharashtra ordered his release from the jail. After release, Hazare wrote a letter to then chief minister Manohar Joshi
Manohar Joshi
Manohar Gajanan Joshi, is an Indian politician from the state of Maharashtra. He is one of the prominent leaders of the Shiv Sena political party. He was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 1995–1999.-Background and family:...
demanding Gholap's removal for his role in alleged malpractices in the Awami Merchant Bank. Gholap resigned from the cabinet on 27 April 1999.
In 2003 corruption charges were raised by Hazare against four NCP ministers of the Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
-NCP
Nationalist Congress Party
The Nationalist Congress Party is a centre to centre left political party primarily based in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Background:...
government. He started his fast unto death on 9 August 2003. He ended his fast on 17 August 2003 after then chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde formed a one-man commission headed by the retired justice P. B. Sawant
P. B. Sawant
P. B. Sawant is a former Supreme Court judge in India.After doing his law degree from Bombay University, Sawant started practise as an advocate at the Bombay High Court and Supreme Court of India. In 1973 he was appointed Judge of the Bombay High Court; among his notable acts was an inquiry on...
to probe his charges. The P. B. Sawant commission report, submitted on 23 February 2005, indicted Sureshdada Jain
Sureshdada Jain
Sureshkumar Bhikamchand Jain, also known as Suresh Jain and Sureshdada Jain, is an Indian politician from Jalgaon in Maharashtra. He changed his party affiliation a number of times in his political career and has been elected to the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha for the record nine times...
, Nawab Malik, and Padmasinh Patil
Padamsinha Bajirao Patil
Dr. Padamsinh Bajirao Patil is member of 15th Lok Sabha , lower of house of Parliament of India, from Osmanabad in Maharashtra state in India. He was elected to Lok Sabha on Nationalist Congress Party ticket in May 2009 general elections...
. The report exonerated Vijaykumar Gavit. Suresh Jain and Nawab Malik resigned from the cabinet in March 2005.
Three trusts headed by Anna Hazare were also indicted in the P. B. Sawant commission report. spent by the Hind Swaraj Trust for Anna Hazare's birthday celebrations was concluded by the commission as illegal and amounting to a corrupt practice, though Abhay Firodia, an industrialist subsequently donated to the trust for that purpose. The setting apart of 11 acres of its land by the trust in favour of the Zilla Parishad
Zilla Parishad
Zilla Parishad is a local government body at the district level in India. It looks after the administration of the rural area of the district and its office is located at the district headquarters...
without obtaining permission from the charity commissioner was concluded as a case of maladministration. The commission also concluded that the maintenance of accounts of the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Janandolan Trust after 10 November 2001 had not been according to the rules and spent by the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Trust for renovating a temple was in contravention to its object of imparting secular education.
Right to Information movement
In the early 2000s Hazare led a movement in Maharashtra state which forced the state government to enact a revised Maharashtra Right to Information Act. This Act was later considered as the base document for the Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI)Right to Information Act
The Right to Information Act 2005 is an Act of the Parliament of India "to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens." The Act applies to all States and Union Territories of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir has its own act...
, enacted by the Union Government. It also ensured that the President of India assented to this new Act.
On 20 July 2006 the Union Cabinet amended the Right to Information Act 2005 to exclude the file noting by the government officials from its purview. Hazare began his fast unto death on 9 August 2006 in Alandi
Alandi
Alandi is a city and a municipal council in Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Geography:Alandi is located on the banks of the Indrayani River, east of Pune, India. It has an average elevation of .-Demographics:...
against the proposed amendment. He ended his fast on 19 August 2006, after the government agreed to change its earlier decision.
Regulation of Transfers and Prevention of Delay in Discharge of Official Duties Act
Before 2006 in the state of Maharashtra, even honest government officers were transferred to other places according to ministers wish. Sometimes within months of being posted to a place, whereas some corrupt and favoured officials were cozy in their postings for many years in some cases even for 10 to 20 years and since there was not any guideline or law many government officials were reluctant to process files that contained important public proposals and decisions. Anna fought hard for a law whereby a government servant must clear a file within a specified time and that transfers must take place only after three years. After many years of relentless efforts of Anna, finally on 25 May 2006 state government of Maharashtra issued a notification announcing that the execution of the special act, The Prevention of Delay in Discharge of Official Duties Act 2006, aimed at curbing the delay by its officers and employees in discharging their duties. This act provides for disciplinary action against officials who move files slowly and enables monitoring officials who stay too long in a post, or in a department, and for involvement in a corrupt nexus. Within this act, it is mandatory for the government to effect transfers of all government officers and employees, except Class IV workers, after the stipulated three years. Act also prevents the government from effecting frequent transfers of officers before the stipulated three-year tenure, except in case of emergency and under exceptional circumstances. Maharashtra is the first state in the country to have introduced such act. However, like others, this law has also not been followed in its true spirit.Campaign against liquor from food grains
Constitution of India Article 47 commits the State to raise the standard of living and improve public health, and prohibit the consumption of intoxicating drinks and drugs injurious to health.In 2007 Maharashtra Government rolled out the grain-based liquor policy aimed to encourage production of liquor from food grain in the light of the rising demand for spirit – used for industrial purposes and potable liquor and Issue 36 licenses for distilleries for making alcohol from food grains.
Anna Hazare opposed the governments policy to promote making liquor from food grains in Maharashtra. He argued the government that Maharashtra is a food-deficit State and there was shortage of food grains and it is not logical to promote producing liquor from food grains. One of the State ministers Laxman Dhoble said in his speech that those opposing the decision to allow use of food grains for the production of liquor are anti-farmers and those people should be beaten up with sugarcane sticks. Hazare initiated fast at Shirdi, but on 21 March 2010 government promised to review the policy and Anna ended his 5 day long fast. But the government later granted 36 licences and grants of (per litre of alcohol) to politicians or their sons who were directly or indirectly engaged in making alcohol from foodgrains. Some of the main beneficiaries of these licences includes Amit and Dheeraj Deshmukh, sons of Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh
Vilasrao Deshmukh
Vilasrao Dagadojirao Deshmukh , popularly known as Vilasrao is the current Minister of Science and Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences....
, Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
leader Gopinath Munde
Gopinath Munde
Gopinath Munde ) is an Indian politician. He is a senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party.-Early life:Gopinath Munde was born in Nathra Village, Parali, Beed, Maharashtra, India, in a farmer's family in rural Maharashtra. According to him, his parents "struggled against heavy odds and did not...
's daughter Pankaja Palwe and her husband Charudatta Palwe, sons-in-law of P.V. Narasimha Rao, Rajya Sabha MP Govindrao Adik. The government approved the proposal for food grain-based alcohol production in spite of stiff opposition from the planning and finance departments saying there is a huge demand in other countries for food grain made liquor in comparison with that of molasses
Molasses
Molasses is a viscous by-product of the processing of sugar cane, grapes or sugar beets into sugar. The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey". The quality of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or sugar beet,...
. Anna filed a Public Interest Litigation
Public interest litigation
In Indian law, Public Interest Litigation OR जनहित याचिका means litigation for the protection of the public interest. It is litigation introduced in a court of law, not by the aggrieved party but by the court itself or by any other private party...
against the Government of Maharashtra
Government of Maharashtra
Government of Maharashtra is the government for the state of Maharashtra in Western India.It is an elected government with 288 MLAs elected to the legislative assembly for a 5 year term.-Ministers:...
for allowing food-grains for manufacturing liquor in the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court
Bombay High Court
Bombay High Court at Mumbai, Maharashtra, is the High Court of India with jurisdiction over the states of Maharashtra & Goa, and, the Union Territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli...
. On 20 August 2009 Maharashtra government stopped the policy. However, distilleries sanctioned before that date and those who started production within two years of sanction were entitled for subsidies.
On 5 May 2011 court refused to hear a Public Interest Litigation saying "not before me, this is a court of law, not a court of justice" as a reason of not hearing the plea. One of Principal Secretary in Maharashtra state C.S. Sangeet Rao, enlighten that there is no law exists to scrap these licences as this is a government policy.
Lokpal Bill movement
In 2011, Hazare initiated a SatyagrahaSatyagraha
Satyagraha , loosely translated as "insistence on truth satya agraha soul force" or "truth force" is a particular philosophy and practice within the broader overall category generally known as nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. The term "satyagraha" was conceived and developed by Mahatma...
movement for passing a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal
Jan Lokpal Bill
The Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the citizens' ombudsman bill, is a proposed independent anti-corruption law in India. Anti-corruption social activists proposed it as a more effective improvement to the original Lokpal bill, which is currently being proposed by the Government of India.The...
(ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
) bill in the Indian Parliament as conceived in the Jan Lokpal Bill
Jan Lokpal Bill
The Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the citizens' ombudsman bill, is a proposed independent anti-corruption law in India. Anti-corruption social activists proposed it as a more effective improvement to the original Lokpal bill, which is currently being proposed by the Government of India.The...
(People's Ombudsman Bill). The Jan Lokpal Bill was drafted earlier by N. Santosh Hegde, former justice of the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
and Lokayukta
LokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, Prashant Bhushan
Prashant Bhushan
Prashant Bhushan is an advocate practicing in Delhi and is a social activist. He is the son of lawyer and former Law Minister of India Shanti Bhushan.-Education:...
, a senior lawyer in the Supreme Court and Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kumar Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India's Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to...
, a social activist along with members of the India Against Corruption
India Against Corruption
India Against Corruption is a people's movement to demand comprehensive reforms of anti-corruption systems in India. Several eminent citizens have come together to force the Government of India to enact the Jan Lokpal Bill .- Strategy :...
movement. This draft bill incorporated more stringent provisions and wider power to the Lokpal (Ombudsman) than the draft Lokpal bill prepared by the government in 2010. These include placing "the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
within the ambit of the proposed lokpal’s powers".
Hunger strike in Delhi
Hazare began his Indefinite FastHunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
on 5 April 2011 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
to press for the demand to form a joint committee of the representatives of the Government and the civil society to draft a stronger anti-corruption bill with stronger penal actions and more independence to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Ombudsmen in the states), after his demand was rejected by the Prime Minister of India
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
. He stated, "I will fast until Jan Lokpal Bill is passed".
The movement attracted attention in the media, and thousands of supporters. Almost 150 people reportedly joined Hazare in his fast. Social activists, including Medha Patkar
Medha Patkar
Medha Patkar is an Indian social activist. She is known for her role in Narmada Bachao Andolan. She has also filed a public interest petition in the Bombay high court against Lavasa along with other members of National Alliance of People's Movements , including Anna Hazare.-Personal life:Medha...
, Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kumar Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India's Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to...
, former IPS
Indian Police Service
The Indian Police Service , simply known as Indian Police or IPS, is one of the three All India Services of the Government of India...
officer Kiran Bedi
Kiran Bedi
Kiran Bedi is an Indian social activist and a retired Indian Police Service officer. Bedi joined the police service in 1972 and became the first woman officer in the IPS. Bedi held the post of Director General at the Bureau of Police Research and Development before she voluntarily retired from...
, and Jayaprakash Narayan
Jayaprakash Narayan (Lok Satta)
Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan , widely known as JP, is a noted Indian politician, social reformer, TV commentator and columnist. He is the President of Lok Satta Party and currently a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Kukatpally constituency in Andhra Pradesh.http://www.loksatta.org/cms/index.php?...
lent their support to Hazare's hunger strike and anti-corruption campaign. People have shown support in internet social media such as Twitter and Facebook. In addition to spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar usually known as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, born Ravi Shankar Ratnam, born 13 May 1956) is a spiritual leader and founder of the Art of Living Foundation , which aims at relieving individual stress, societal problems and violence. It is an NGO with UNESCO consultative status...
, Swami Ramdev
Swami Ramdev
Swami Ramdev is popularly known as Baba Ramdev. This young monk has attained immence popularity in a very short span of time. His yog-camps are attended by a large number of people in India and abroad...
, Swami Agnivesh
Swami Agnivesh
Agnivesh is an Indian social worker, self-proclaimed Arya Samaj scholar, and a Hindu social activist. He is best known for his work against bonded labour through the Bonded Labour Liberation Front, which he founded in 1981...
and former Indian cricketer Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev Ramlal Nikhanj , better known as Kapil Dev, is a former Indian cricketer. He captained the Indian cricket team which won the 1983 Cricket World Cup...
, many celebrities showed their public support through Twitter. Hazare decided that he would not allow any politician to sit with him in this movement. Politicians like Uma Bharti
Uma Bharti
Uma Ragini Bharti , is an Indian politician. She was born in Tikamgarh District, Madhya Pradesh to a religious Lodhi Rajput family and from a very young age, started holding discourses on Indian Epics.Her father was an atheist...
and Om Prakash Chautala
Om Prakash Chautala
Om Prakash Chautala is an Indian politician from the state of Haryana and the leader of the Indian National Lok Dal political party. He is a former Chief Minister of Haryana. Presently, he is the Leader of Opposition in the Haryana Vidhan Sabha.Chautala is the son of Chaudhari Devi Lal, a former...
were shooed away by the protesters when they came to visit the site where the protest was taking place. On 6 April 2011 Sharad Pawar
Sharad Pawar
Sharadchandra Govindrao Pawar , popularly known as SAHEB , is the president of the Nationalist Congress Party which he founded in 1999, after separating from the Indian National Congress...
resigned from the group of ministers formed for reviewing the draft Lokpal bill 2010.
Protests spread to Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad also known as Karnavati is the largest city in Gujarat, India. It is the former capital of Gujarat and is also the judicial capital of Gujarat as the Gujarat High Court has its seat in Ahmedabad...
, Guwahati
Guwahati
Guwahati, Pragjyotishpura in ancient Assam formerly known as Gauhati is a metropolis,the largest city of Assam in India and ancient urban area in North East India, with a population of 963,429. It is also the largest metropolitan area in north-eastern India...
, Shillong
Shillong
-Connectivity:Although well connected by road, Shillong has no rail connection and a proper air connection. Umroi Airport exists but has only limited flights.-Roadways:Shillong is well connected by roads with all major north eastern states...
, Aizawl
Aizawl
Aizawl is the capital of the state of Mizoram in India. With a resident population 228,280 , it is the largest city within the state. It is also the center of all important government offices, state assembly house and civil secretariat...
and a number of other cities in India.
End of hunger strike after meeting demands
On 8 April 2011 the Government of India accepted all demands of the movement. On 9 April 2011 it issued a notification in the Gazette of IndiaThe Gazette of India
The Gazette of India is an authorised legal document and official journal of Government of India containing the mode of operations under the law of the land...
on formation of a joint committee. It accepted the formula that there be a politician Chairman and an activist, non-politician Co-Chairman. According to the notification, Pranab Mukherjee
Pranab Mukherjee
Pranab Kumar Mukherjee is the current Finance Minister of India and leader of the current Lok Sabha.Mukherjee is a senior member of the Cabinet Committees on Economic Affairs, Infrastructure, Parliamentary Affairs, Political Affairs, Prices, Security, Unique Identification Authority of India,...
will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan in Allahabad, United Provinces is a former Law Minister of India at Ministry of Law and Justice in the Morarji Desai Ministry and also a senior advocate...
will be the co-chairman. “The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of the civil society. The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P. Chidambaram
P. Chidambaram
P. Chidambaram or Chidambaram Palaniappan, sometimes written Palaniappan Chidambaram is an Indian politician with the Indian National Congress and present Union Minister of Home Affairs of the Republic of India. Previously he was the Finance Minister of India from May 2004 to November 2008...
, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M. Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal
Kapil Sibal
Kapil Sibal is an Indian politician and lawyer. He is currently the Minister of Communications and Information Technology. He also held the two ministries Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences in the First Manmohan Singh Cabinet...
, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs. The five nominees of the civil society are Anna Hazare, N. Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan in Allahabad, United Provinces is a former Law Minister of India at Ministry of Law and Justice in the Morarji Desai Ministry and also a senior advocate...
Senior Advocate, Prashant Bhushan
Prashant Bhushan
Prashant Bhushan is an advocate practicing in Delhi and is a social activist. He is the son of lawyer and former Law Minister of India Shanti Bhushan.-Education:...
, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kumar Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India's Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to...
.
On the morning of 9 April 2011 Hazare ended his 98-hour hunger strike. He addressed the people and set a deadline of 15 August 2011 to pass the Lokpal Bill in the Indian Parliament.
Anna Hazare said that if the bill does not pass he will call for a mass nation-wide agitation. He called his movement as "second struggle for independence
Indian independence movement
The term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
" and he will continue the fight.
Differences with the government on draft bill
During the meeting of the joint drafting committee on 30 May 2011, the Union government members opposed the inclusion of the prime minister, higher judiciary and the acts of the MPMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
s under the purview of the Lokpal in the draft bill. On 31 May 2011, Pranab Mukherjee, chairman of the joint drafting committee sent a letter to the chief ministers of all states and the leaders of the political parties seeking their opinion on six contentious issues in the proposed Lokpal Bill, including whether to bring the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts under the purview of the proposed law. But the civil society members of the drafting committee considered that keeping the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts out of the purview of the Lokpal would be a violation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption
United Nations Convention against Corruption
The United Nations Convention against Corruption is the first legally binding international anti-corruption instrument. In its 8 Chapters and 71 Articles, the UNCAC obliges its States Parties to implement a wide and detailed range of anti-corruption measures affecting their laws, institutions and...
.
Anna Hazare and other civil society members decided to boycott the meeting of the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee scheduled on 6 June 2011 in protest against the forcible eviction of Swami Ramdev
Swami Ramdev
Swami Ramdev is popularly known as Baba Ramdev. This young monk has attained immence popularity in a very short span of time. His yog-camps are attended by a large number of people in India and abroad...
and his followers by the Delhi Police
Department of Police, Delhi
The Department of Police , also known as Delhi Police , is the main law and order agency for the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
from Ramlila Maidan
Ramlila Maidan
Ramlila Maidan also Ramlila Ground is a playground located in New Delhi, India. It is used for religious festivals, major political rallies and meetings, and entertainment events. It is located near New Delhi Railway Station and Delhi Gate.-History:...
on 5 June 2011, while they were on hunger strike against the issues of black money and corruption and doubting seriousness of the government in taking measures to eradicate corruption.
On 6 June 2011, the members of the civil society of the joint Lokpal bill drafting committee in New Delhi sent a letter to Pranab Mukherjee, the chairman of the committee, explaining reasons for their absence at the meeting and also asked government to make its stand public on the contentious issues related to the proposed draft legislation. They also decided that the future meetings will be attended only if they were telecast live. On 8 June 2011 at Rajghat, describing his movement as the second freedom struggle, Anna criticised the Government for trying to discredit the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee and threatened to go on indefinite fast again from 16 August 2011 if the Lokpal Bill is not passed by then. He also criticised the Government for putting hurdles in the drafting of a strong Lokpal Bill and its attempts to malign the civil society members of the joint Lokpal panel.
Indefinite fast
On 28 July 2011 the union cabinet on approved a draft of the Lokpal Bill, which keeps the Prime Minister, judiciary and lower bureaucracy out of the ambit of the proposed corruption ombudsman Lokpal. Hazare rejected the government version by describing it as “cruel joke’’ and wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan SinghManmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
, and told him his decision to go on an indefinite fast from 16 August 2011 at Jantar Mantar if the government introduced its own version of the bill in Parliament without taking suggestions from civil society members.
Within twenty four hours of cabinet's endorsement of a weak Lokpal Bill, over ten thousand peoples from across the country sent faxes directly to the government demanding a bill with stronger provisions. The Mumbai Taxi Men’s Union, comprises over 30,000 taxi drivers have extended their full support to Hazare’s fast by keeping all taxis off the roads on 16 August 2011. Lawyers of Allahabad High Court
Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court or the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad is a high court having jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh since 1950...
described Lokpal Bill proposed by the government as against the interest of the country and pledged their support to Hazare by hunger strike at Allahabad on 16 August 2011. On 30 July 2011 Vishwa Hindu Parishad supported Hazare's indefinite fast by saying movement for an effective anti-corruption ombudsman needs the backing of people.
On 1 August, Public interest litigation
Public interest litigation
In Indian law, Public Interest Litigation OR जनहित याचिका means litigation for the protection of the public interest. It is litigation introduced in a court of law, not by the aggrieved party but by the court itself or by any other private party...
was filed in the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
by Hemant Patil, a Maharashtra-based social worker and businessman, to restrain Hazare from going on his proposed indefinite fast. The petitioner demanded to prohibit the fast alleging that Hazare's demands are unconstitutional and amount to interference in legislative process.
Arrest and aftermath
On 16 August 2011, Hazare was arrested four hours before the planned indefinite hunger strike. Rajan Bhagat, spokesman for Delhi Police, said police arrested Hazare under a legal provision that bans public gatherings and protests at the park in Delhi where he was planning to begin his hunger strike. Police took that action after Hazare refused to meet the conditions put forward by police for allowing the protest. The conditions included restricting the length of the fast to three days and the number of protesters at the site to 5,000. Later in the afternoon, Anna was produced before a magistrate who offered him bail but Anna Hazare refused to provide the bail bond. The magistrate sent him judicial custody for seven days and he was taken to Tihar jail. After announcements by Prashant Bhushan, local television, and social media sites (including Facebook), a march of thousands in support of Hazare began from the India GateIndia Gate
The India Gate is the national monument of India. Situated in the heart of New Delhi, India Gate was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, inspired by the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It was built in 1931...
to Jantar Mantar.
Along with Hazare, other key members of the India Against Corruption
India Against Corruption
India Against Corruption is a people's movement to demand comprehensive reforms of anti-corruption systems in India. Several eminent citizens have come together to force the Government of India to enact the Jan Lokpal Bill .- Strategy :...
movement including Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kejriwal
Arvind Kumar Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India's Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to...
, Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan
Shanti Bhushan in Allahabad, United Provinces is a former Law Minister of India at Ministry of Law and Justice in the Morarji Desai Ministry and also a senior advocate...
, Kiran Bedi
Kiran Bedi
Kiran Bedi is an Indian social activist and a retired Indian Police Service officer. Bedi joined the police service in 1972 and became the first woman officer in the IPS. Bedi held the post of Director General at the Bureau of Police Research and Development before she voluntarily retired from...
and Manish Sisodia
Manish Sisodia
Manish Sisodia is an Indian social activist, recognized for being a key member in the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement and Team Anna. Formerly a news producer at Zee News, Manish is an active RTI activist...
were also detained from different locations. It was reported that about 1,300 supporters were detained in Delhi. Media also reported that the arrest sparked off protests with people courting arrests in different parts of the country. The opposition parties in the country came out against the arrest, likening the government action to the emergency imposed in the country in 1975. Both the houses of Parliament were adjourned over the issue.
Eventually, after being kept in judicial detention for just four hours, he was released unconditionally without any bail bond by the magistrate on a request by the police, but Hazare
refused to leave Tihar Jail
Tihar Jail
Tihar Prisons , also called Tihar Jail and Tihar Ashram , is the largest complex of prisons in South Asia. It is located at Tihar village, approximately 7 km from Chanakya Puri, to the west of New Delhi, India. The surrounding area is called Hari Nagar.The prison is maintained as a...
. He demanded an unconditional permission from the police to observe a fast at Ramlila Maidan (Ground) in support of the Jan Lokpal bill and refused to leave the jail. Hazare continued his fast inside the jail and refused to leave the jail though the jail authorities had technically released him.
After his arrest, Anna Hazare received support from people across the country. There were reports of "nearly 570 demonstrations and protests by Anna supporters across the country" against the government's imprisonment of Hazare and others. Due to the nationwide protests of millions, the government agreed to allow him to begin a public hunger strike of fifteen days. After talks with public authorities, Hazare decided to hold his protest at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi. On 20 August 2011 Hazare "left the Tihar Jail for the Ramlila Grounds". Hazare promised reporters "he would fight to the 'last breath' until the government gets his team's Jan Lokpal Bill passed in this session of Parliament, which ends on 8 September."
Fast at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi
On 20 August 2011 thousands came to the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi to show their support for Hazare, while "his advisers made televison appearances to rally public support and defend themselves against criticism that their protest campaign and refusal to compromise is undermining India's parliamentary process." The National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) condemned Hazare's deadline for passing the bill as undermining democracy, which operates by "holding wide-ranging consultations and discussions, allowing for dissent and evolving a consensus. ...He [Hazare] has the right to protest and dissent. But nobody can claim it as an absolute right and deny the right of dissent to others." The Congress partyIndian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
confirmed that Maharashtra Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Umesh Chandra Sarangi (who has a history of mediating between Hazare and government officials) was meeting with the social activist again "to find points of consensus and defuse the situation". On 21 August 2011 "tens of thousands" came to Ramlila Maidan to support Hazare as he sat on an elevated platform. It was reported that Hazare at that point had "lost more than seven pounds since beginning his fast", despite this he stated "'I will not withdraw my hunger strike until the Jan Lokpal bill is passed in the Parliament. I can die but I will not bend.'" Hazare ended his fast on 28 August 2011, after the Indian Government had passed the resolution for the Lokpal Bill unanimously,
He was admitted to Medanta Medicity, Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
for post-fast care. He had lost 7.5 kg and was very dehydrated after the 288 hour long fast.
I Am Anna Chant
Within a few days of Anna Hazare's first fast demanding a strong Lokpal (on 5 April 2011), supporters across various cities of India started a campaign known as "I Am Anna Hazare", which is similar to the "We Are All Khaled Said" campaign well known in the Egyptian uprising. At during Anna Hazare's second fast, the topi, the cap which Anna Hazare became synonymous with, became almost a fashion statement. Sales of the topis hit an all time high. Kiran BediKiran Bedi
Kiran Bedi is an Indian social activist and a retired Indian Police Service officer. Bedi joined the police service in 1972 and became the first woman officer in the IPS. Bedi held the post of Director General at the Bureau of Police Research and Development before she voluntarily retired from...
declared that the "I am Anna" topi should be used as a deterrence method whenever someone asked for a bribe. She went to say that the topi should be always kept in one's bag and whenever anybody ask for a bribe, the topi should be shown to them.
Electoral reform movement
In 2011, Anna Hazare demanded an amendment to the electoral law to incorporate the option of None of the aboveNone of the above
None of the Above or against all is a ballot option in some jurisdictions or organizations, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system...
in the electronic voting machines during the Indian elections. The "None of the above (NOTA)" is a ballot option that allows an electorate to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in an electoral system, in case of non-availability of any candidate of his choice, as his Right to Reject. Soon, the Chief Election Commissioner of India Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi supported Hazare's demand for the electoral reforms.
Protest against atrocities against Swami Ramdev and his supporters
On 8 June 2011, Anna Hazare and thousands of his supporters observed fastFasting
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
from 10 am to 6 pm at Rajghat
Raj Ghat and associated memorials
Raj Ghat is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. Originally it was the name of a historic ghat of Old Delhi on the banks of Yamuna river. Close to it, and east of Daryaganj was “Raj Ghat Gate” of the walled city, opening at Raj Ghat on Yamuna River. Later the memorial area was also called Raj ghat...
to protest against the midnight crackdown of 5 June 2011 by the Delhi Police
Department of Police, Delhi
The Department of Police , also known as Delhi Police , is the main law and order agency for the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
on Swami Ramdev’s fast at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi. The fast was initially planned to be held at Jantar Mantar, but the venue was shifted after the denial of permission by the Delhi police. Anna Hazare held the Prime Minister of India responsible for the atrocities and termed the police action as a blot on humanity and an attempt to stifle democracy. According to one of the Anna's young supporters, the large presence of youths in the protest was due to their support to his use of nonviolence
Nonviolence
Nonviolence has two meanings. It can refer, first, to a general philosophy of abstention from violence because of moral or religious principle It can refer to the behaviour of people using nonviolent action Nonviolence has two (closely related) meanings. (1) It can refer, first, to a general...
means of protest similar to Gandhi.
Views on Narendra Modi
In a press conference in April 2011, Anna Hazare praised Narendra ModiNarendra Modi
Narendra Damodardas Modi is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat.He was born in a middle class family in Vadnagar; and is a member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh since childhood, as also an active politician since early in life. He holds a masters degree in political...
, the chief minister of Gujarat for his efforts on rural development along with Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumar
Nitish Kumār is an Indian politician currently serving as Chief Minister of Bihar, an eastern state of India. He leads the Janata Dal party...
, chief minister of Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
, saying that the same should be emulated by the chief ministers of all states. Subsequently, Modi wrote an open letter to him, hailing him as a Gandhian and anti-corruption activist while Digvijay Singh, the General Secretary of the Congress party, criticised him for his comment. In May 2011, Hazare, during his visit to Gujarat, changed his view and criticised Modi for rampant corruption by Government officials in Gujarat. He urged Modi to appoint a Lokayukta
LokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
in Gujarat. He also commented that the media had projected an incorrect image of Vibrant Gujarat
Vibrant Gujarat
Vibrant Gujarat is the name given to a biennial investors' summit held by the government of Gujarat in Gujarat, India. The event is aimed at bringing together business leaders, investors, corporations, thought leaders, policy and opinion makers; the summit is advertised as a platform to understand...
, very different from the prevalent situation.
Fraud during fasts
A cardiologistCardiology
Cardiology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the heart . The field includes diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart disease and electrophysiology...
from Pune, Abhijit Vaidya – founder of Arogya Sena, a non-governmental agency active in public health, disaster management and social campaigns – claimed that he was informed by the close associates of Anna Hazare during a fast in Ralegan-Siddhi, that he was given glucose
Glucose
Glucose is a simple sugar and an important carbohydrate in biology. Cells use it as the primary source of energy and a metabolic intermediate...
and electrolyte
Electrolyte
In chemistry, an electrolyte is any substance containing free ions that make the substance electrically conductive. The most typical electrolyte is an ionic solution, but molten electrolytes and solid electrolytes are also possible....
solutions during a fast. Hazare and his associates refused to comment on the allegation.
Accusations of corruption
The government of the state of Maharashtra instituted a Commission of Inquiry under Justice PB Sawant in September 2003 to enquire into allegations of corruption against several people, including four ministers in the state as well as the "Hind Swaraj Trust" headed by Hazare. The Commission submitted its report on 22 February 2005 in which it indicted the Hind Swaraj Trust for corrupt practice of spending Rs. 2.20 lakhs of its funds on the birthday celebrations of Hazare.Two days ahead of Hazare's proposed indefinite fast on 16 August 2011, the ruling party of India, the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
, launched an attack on him alleging that "the moral core of Hazare has been ripped apart" by the Justice P B Sawant Commission.
In response to this allegaton, Hazare's lawyer Milind Pawar, claimed that the commission had remarked about "irregularities" in the accounts, but had not held him guilty of any "corrupt" practices.
Pawar said that on 16 June 1998, a celebration was organised to facilitate Hazare on winning an award from a US based NGO and it coincided with his 61st birthday. The trust spent Rs 2.18 lakh for the function. Abhay Phirodia, a Pune-based industrialist, who took the initiative to organise this function donated an amount of Rs 2,48,950 to the trust by cheque soon after the function.
Hazare himself responded to the allegation by daring the government to file a First Information Report
First Information Report
A First Information Report or FIR is a written document prepared by the police in India, Pakistan and Japan when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time and that is why it is called the First...
(FIR) against him to prove the charges.
Accusation of being anti-democratic and anti-dalit
An article written in The Telegraph (Kolkata)The Telegraph (Kolkata)
The Telegraph is an Indian daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Kolkata since 1982. It is published by the ABP Group and the newspaper vies with the Times of India for the position of having the widest widest circulation of any newspaper in Eastern India.According to the Audit...
by writer and historian Ramchandra Guha state that that environmental journalist Mukul Sharma found that that Anna Hazare forced the Dalit families in Ralegan Siddhi to adopt a vegetarian diet, and that those who violated the decree were tied to a post and flogged. Mukul Sharma also found that no panchayat elections have been held in the village for the past two decades, and that no campaigning was allowed during state and national elections, upon the instructions of Anna Hazare.
Dalit
Dalit
Dalit is a designation for a group of people traditionally regarded as Untouchable. Dalits are a mixed population, consisting of numerous castes from all over South Asia; they speak a variety of languages and practice a multitude of religions...
columnists like Chandrabhan Prasad
Chandrabhan Prasad
Chandra Bhan Prasad is a Dalit writer and is the first Dalit to have a regular column in an Indian English newspaper.-Early life:Chandra Bhan Prasad was born in a village in Azamgarh district of Eastern Uttar Pradesh...
have opined that the movement initiated by Anna Hazare against corruption and for the Jan Lokpal bill is taking us to a situation of rejecting representative democracy and also alleged that this movement is an upper-caste uprising against India's political democracy. He also claimed that the centralisation such huge powers in Lokapal, which is a non-elected entity will lead the democratic setup to a very dangerous situation.
Dalit activist Kancha Ilaiah
Kancha Ilaiah
Kancha Ilaiah is an Indian activist and writer. His books include Why I am not a Hindu, God As Political Philosopher: Budha's challenge to Brahminism, A Hollow Shell, The State and Repressive Culture, Manatatwam , and Buffalo Nationalism: A Critique of Spiritual Fascism.- Bibliography :*Why I Am...
also commented in a similar fashion, that "The Anna movement is an anti-social justice, manuvadi movement. The Dalits, tribals, OBCs and minorities have nothing to do with it. We oppose it." Another activist Anoop Kheri claimed that "The language, symbols used by the movement clearly reflects its upper caste Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
nature, a very rightwing Hindu patriotism is being used to get the entire country against corruption. And as a dalit, I have a problem with it."
There was also an allegation that an RTI activist was denied permission to protest by having a fast-unto-death at Ralegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi is a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra state in western India. It is located at a distance of 87 km from Pune. The village has an area of 982.31 ha . It is considered a model of environmental conservation. The village has carried out programs like...
, the grama sabha stating that the reason was that only Anna Hazare can hold such fasts in his village.
During his protest against corruption, another activist, Udit Raj
Udit Raj
Udit Raj was born in Ramnagar, Uttar Pradesh into a low caste Khatik Hindu family, and studied for BA at Allahabad University. He was selected for the Indian Revenue Service in 1988 and served as the Dy, Commissioner, Joint Commissioner and Addl. Commissioner of Income Tax at New Delhi...
, who was denied permission to protest against Anna Hazare, warned that succumbing to Hazare's demands, which he claimed were against the parliamentary processes will set a dangerous trend rendering the backward classes more vulnerable, as such mass mobilisations coercing the government with a "set of solutions" against constitutional processes could also be used against affirmative action
Affirmative action
Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
, and is a threat to democracy.
Later, it came to light that poor dalits had been paid money of up to 200 each, exploiting their desperation. The participants said that they were asked to shout slogans against Anna, although the organizers have denied it. Some protesters said that they had been told that it was a pro-Anna protest, but feel cheated after realising that it was against Anna hazare.
Accusation of being nonsecular
On 22 August 2011 writer-actor Arundhati RoyArundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy is an Indian novelist. She won the Booker Prize in 1997 for her novel, The God of Small Things, and has also written two screenplays and several collections of essays...
accused Hazare in a newspaper article of being nonsecular. She questioned his secular credentials pointing out Hazare's "support for Raj Thackeray
Raj Thackeray
Raj Shrikant Thackeray is the founder and president of the right-wing Marathi ethnocentric regional political party, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in the state of Maharashtra, India...
's Marathi Manoos xenophobia
Xenophobia
Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."...
and (has praised) the 'development model' of Gujarat's CM who oversaw the 2002 pogrom against Muslims". The website of the newspaper published many responses to her article and these were mostly critical of her views. Activist Medha Patkar
Medha Patkar
Medha Patkar is an Indian social activist. She is known for her role in Narmada Bachao Andolan. She has also filed a public interest petition in the Bombay high court against Lavasa along with other members of National Alliance of People's Movements , including Anna Hazare.-Personal life:Medha...
also strongly criticised Roy, saying that her views were misplaced.
Hazare has in the past stood in firm opposition to the Shiv Sena and BJP governments in Maharashtra. Activist and writer Asghar Ali Engineer in an EPW article on Communalism
Communalism
Communalism is a term with three distinct meanings according to the Random House Unabridged Dictionary'.'These include "a theory of government or a system of government in which independent communes participate in a federation". "the principles and practice of communal ownership"...
and Communal Violence reported,
Hazare was accused of working for RSS and BJP's behest, and against Muslims by cleric Bukhari of the Jama Masjid. Bhukhari was subsequently criticised for being a Royal Imam and the communal comments being his personal views which did not represent the view of ordinary Muslims.
Conspiracy to murder Hazare
Anna Hazare has exposed large corruption in co-operative sugar factories of Maharashtra. One of the sugar factories which Anna exposed corruption of is controlled by Dr.Padamsinh Bajirao Patil, a member of Parliament of 15th Lok SabhaLok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...
and higher-ranking Leader of Nationalist Congress Party
Nationalist Congress Party
The Nationalist Congress Party is a centre to centre left political party primarily based in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Background:...
from Osmanabad
Osmanabad
Osmanabad is a city and a municipal council in Osmanabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra.-Geography:The city of Osmanabad is located at . It has an average elevation of 647 metres ....
, and also a prime accused and conspirator in the 2006 murder case of Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
leader Pawanraje Nimabalkar.
The conspiracy to kill Hazare was exposed when Parasmal Jain, an accused in the Nimbalkar murder case, in his written confession before a magistrate said that Padamsinh Bajirao Patil had paid a sum of to murder Nimbalkar, and also offered him supari (contract killing sum) to kill Anna Hazare. After this written confession, Anna appealed to the state government of Maharashtra to lodge a separate First Information Report ( FIR )
First Information Report
A First Information Report or FIR is a written document prepared by the police in India, Pakistan and Japan when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time and that is why it is called the First...
against Padamsinh Bajirao Patil for conspiring to murder him but the government did not take any action in this regard. Anna Hazare decided to lodge a complaint himself and on 26 September 2009, he lodged complaint at Parner
Parner
Parner , is an historic city in Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra, India. 'Parner' was named after Rishi Parashar, whose son Maharishi Ved Vyas wrote famous epic "Mahabharat". Parner is at height about 600–900 meters from sea Level...
police station of Ahmednagar District in Maharashtra against the Nationalist Congress Party
Nationalist Congress Party
The Nationalist Congress Party is a centre to centre left political party primarily based in the state of Maharashtra, India.-Background:...
(NCP) MP Padamsinha Patil for conspiring to eliminate him. Padamsinh Patil approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail but on 14 October 2009, the Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court
Bombay High Court
Bombay High Court at Mumbai, Maharashtra, is the High Court of India with jurisdiction over the states of Maharashtra & Goa, and, the Union Territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli...
rejected the anticipatory bail
Anticipatory bail
Under Indian criminal law, there is a provision for anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Criminal Procedure Code. This provision allows a person to seek bail in anticipation of an arrest on accusation of having committed a non-bailable offence....
application of Padamsinh Patil in connection with a complaint filed by Anna after observing that there is a prima facie
Prima facie
Prima facie is a Latin expression meaning on its first encounter, first blush, or at first sight. The literal translation would be "at first face", from the feminine form of primus and facies , both in the ablative case. It is used in modern legal English to signify that on first examination, a...
evidence against him.
Padmasinh Patil appealed for an anticipatory bail in Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
which the court rejected on 6 November 2009. On 11 November 2009 Padmasinh Patil surrendered before the sessions court in Latur
LaTur
La Tur was a Mexican airline that operated from 1988 until 1992 when it was taken over by TAESA.-Company history:Set up in 1988 to help develop the tourist market, La Tur began operations using McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft. One year later, the Airbus A300-600 was introduced for flights to Europe...
as per a directive of the Supreme Court and was sent to judicial remand for 14 days. On 16 December 2009 Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court granted bail to him. , the verdict is pending.
Honours, awards and international recognition
| Year | Award | Awarding organization |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | NDTV Indian of the Year NDTV Indian of the Year -Winners:-7th NDTV Indian of the Year:The 7th NDTV Indian of the Year was held at the Taj Palace Hotel on October 18, 2011. The winners were:* Indian of the Year – Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal* India's Heroes – India national cricket team... with Arvind Kejriwal Arvind Kejriwal Arvind Kumar Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India's Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to... |
NDTV NDTV NDTV is an Indian commercial broadcasting television network founded in 1988. It was founded by Prannoy Roy, an eminent journalist and current chairman and director of NDTV Group. NDTV currently has more than 1,000 employees producing news from over twenty locations in India... |
| 2008 | Jit Gill Memorial Award | World Bank World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty... |
| 2005 | Honorary Doctorate | Gandhigram Rural University Gandhigram Rural University The Gandhigram Rural Institute is an Indian university that was founded in 1956 as a small, rural college. Based on Mahatma Gandhi’s concept of Nai Talim system of education, GRI has developed academic programmes in Rural Development, Rural Economics and Extension Education, Rural Oriented... |
| 2003 | Integrity Award | Transparency International Transparency International Transparency International is a non-governmental organization that monitors and publicizes corporate and political corruption in international development. It publishes an annual Corruption Perceptions Index, a comparative listing of corruption worldwide... |
| 1998 | CARE International Award | CARE (relief agency) |
| 1997 | Mahaveer Award | |
| 1996 | Shiromani Award | |
| 1992 | Padma Bhushan Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:... |
President of India President of India The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary... |
| 1990 | Padma Shri Padma Shri Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan... |
President of India President of India The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India, as well as the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. President of India is also the formal head of all the three branches of Indian Democracy - Legislature, Executive and Judiciary... |
| 1989 | Krishi Bhushana Award | Government of Maharashtra Government of Maharashtra Government of Maharashtra is the government for the state of Maharashtra in Western India.It is an elected government with 288 MLAs elected to the legislative assembly for a 5 year term.-Ministers:... |
| 1986 | Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra Award | Government of India Government of India The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India... |
Personal life
Anna Hazare is unmarried. He has lived in a small room attached to the Sant Yadavbaba temple in Ralegan SiddhiRalegan Siddhi
Ralegan Siddhi is a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra state in western India. It is located at a distance of 87 km from Pune. The village has an area of 982.31 ha . It is considered a model of environmental conservation. The village has carried out programs like...
since 1975. On 16 April 2011, he declared his bank balance of and as money in hand. He owns 0.07 hectares of family land in Ralegan Siddhi, which is being used by his brothers. Two other pieces of land donated to him by the Indian Army and by a villager have been donated by him for village use. His only income is a pension he receives from the Indian Army.
Further reading
}}- Periwinkle Environmental Education Part-X Author-Harendra Chakhaiyar, Publisher- Jeevandeep Prakashan Pvt Ltd, ISBN-8177444948, 9788177444940
- From poverty to plenty: the story of Ralegan Siddhi Volume 5 of Studies in ecology and sustainable development. Authors- Ganesh Pangare, Vasudha Pangare. Publisher: Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage,1992.Original from the University of Virginia. Digitized 20 Oct 2009. ISBN: 8190006142, 9788190006149 Length-47 pages.
- Dynamics of rural development: lessons from Ralegan Siddhi Publisher- Foundation for Research in Community Health, 2002. Original from The University of Michigan. Digitized 21 Jul 2009 Length 181 pages.
- Troubles and Wet Solutions: Success Story of Ralegan Siddhi's Watershed Development Project Centre for Alternative Agriculture Media
- Ralegan Siddhi Authors: Ramesh Awasthi, Dashrath K. Panmand, Foundation for Research in Community Health (Bombay, India) Publisher: Foundation for Research in Community Health, 1994. Original from The University of Michigan. Digitized 22 Dec 2009. Length 92 pages
- Religion and ecology in India and Southeast Asia Authors- David L. Gosling, Ninian Smart, Contributor- Ninian Smart, Edition-illustrated, Publisher- Routledge, 2001, ISBN 0415240301, 9780415240307, Length 210 pages
- Springs of life: India's water resources Authors Ganesh Pangare, Vasudha Pangare, Binayak Das, World Water Institute (Pune, India), Bharathi Integrated Rural Development Society, Edition- illustrated, Publisher-Academic Foundation, 2006. ISBN 817188489X, 9788171884896
External links
- Anna Hazare – Official website
- Civil Society – Official website
- Profile at NDTVNDTVNDTV is an Indian commercial broadcasting television network founded in 1988. It was founded by Prannoy Roy, an eminent journalist and current chairman and director of NDTV Group. NDTV currently has more than 1,000 employees producing news from over twenty locations in India...
- Biography at CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
- Anna Hazare collected news and commentary at The Times of IndiaThe Times of IndiaThe Times of India is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. TOI has the largest circulation among all English-language newspaper in the world, across all formats . It is owned and managed by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd...
- A successful case of participatory watershed management at Ralegan Siddhi Village in, Maharastra, India
- Draft Lokpal Bill, 2010
- India Against Corruption
- A documentary film about Anna Hazare and the Jan Lokpal movement.