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In a remarkable feat of patriotism and bravery, Anna Hazare’s fight for the wellbeing of his belovedIndia has come to a triumphant close.Last night, the Indian Parliament in New Delhi unanimously passed a resolution accepting Hazare’sdemands on the Jan Lokpal Bill and incorporating elements from it in a new draft. Supporters around thenation went into an uproar as the news spread across the airwaves after Parliament conceded to theHazare’s demands.Anna Hazare being examined by doctors during his fastHazare began his hunger strike demanding a strong anti-corruption legislation on Aug 16 and spentthree nights in jail after being briefly arrested and then bargaining his way out to take his protest to theRamlila Maidan in New Delhi, where it drew thousands of supporters over the week. Faced with anoutpouring of public resentment, the government, which has been battered in recent months withscores of corruption scam exposures, first made attempts at a direct negotiation with Hazare’s aides onlyafter the protests entered their second week.Hazare put forward three major points for a resolution in the House, acceptance of which would haveseen him break his fast. Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee with a statement in the Lok Sabhainitiated the debate. Mukherjee urged Hazare to break his fast. He said there is agreement on 20 of 40basic principles put forward by government and the civil society. He urged the lawmakers to give theirresponses on the issues of Lokpal within the framework of the Constitution.“We are at a crossroads. I am not exaggerating. The entire nation is watching. The world’s largestdemocracy is at a very crucial stage,” Mukherjee said.Later speaking on the bill, Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj said the government Lokpal lacked teeth and so the people got agitated. Shesaid people are so fed up with the scams that they joined the popular protest.Sushma demanded that the Prime Minister should be under the Lokpal as well and argued that if he can be underthe Indian Penal Code and existing anti-corruption law, why he cannot be under an ombudsman to fightgraft. Earlier, Anna Hazare yesterday morning said he would continue to fast until his last, since he wasemboldened and energized by the people who joined him spontaneously.Anna has placed before the government three key demands for a strong Lokpal institution.His group is sticking to the demand of appointments of Lokayuktas in every state, a citizen charter and inclusion of lower bureaucracy under the anti-corruption agency. He on Friday wrote a letter to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to bring a resolution in Parliament that calls for these three major demands to fight corruption nationwide.The area near the Balgandharva Rangamandir at Rani Laxmibai Chowk, Shivajinagar,Cheap Jerseys Outlet, which was the hubof the people’s agitation in support of Hazare’s indefinite fast in New Delhi, became the focal point ofthe celebrations. Young activists burst crackers, waved the tricolour and raised slogans hailing Hazare.The slogan ‘Anna Hazare zindabad’ rent the air. A number of people said Anna Hazare had createdhistory with his 12-day-long fast and now the government would be required to take care that he wouldnot be required to go on a fast again.A more elaborate celebration will be held on Sunday when people gather in various locations tocelebrate the historic achievement. |
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