Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal on Friday took a dig at Team Anna by calling them 'weighty politicians' and saying they had taken the 'anshan' (hunger strike) route to enter politics.
Sibal replied in the negative when asked if he was surprised by Team Anna's move to declare a political front.
"I am not surprised at all. There are two ways to become political, either you go through the normal route or you go through anshan. So, they have adopted the alternative way," Sibal said.
Sibal said Team Anna had earlier not realised that important laws could not be framed outside Parliament. "Actually it was not their fault and I don't blame them for it. They were a small set of people who are not in Parliament, who are outside Parliament and they perhaps thought that laws can be made from Ramlila Maidan or Jantar Mantar," Sibal told a TV channel.
"But they did not realise that a law cannot be made from there. There can be no prescription of a law and a law as important as the Lokpal Bill from Jantar Mantar. Instead of Jantar Mantar, you have to be in Parliament," he added.
Sibal said it had slowly dawned on Team Anna that if they wanted the Bill that they want, they had to be in Parliament. And to be in Parliament, one has to contest elections, he pointed out.
Sibal also said no election was easy as the electorate watched the candidates closely and judged them. Referring to Team Anna, he said anybody who joins politics would also be judged on the same grounds.
"So their previous statements.... We have to pay money to get a vote... they'll be tested on that. The other statements and their conduct... they'll be tested on that. How anybody got a piece of land worth crores of rupees for a pittance will be tested," he said.
