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'Will sing bhajans outside houses of MPs not supporting bill'
Social activist Anna Hazare speaks to CNN-IBN Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai in his home town Ralegaon Siddhi. Hazare says he will re-start the movement if the standing committee doesn't agree to demands on the Jan Lokpal bill.
If the standing committee does not agree to what you say, will you again start the protest?
Yes, we will protest but not against the Parliament...we will see those who oppose it in the standing committee and we will start singing bhajans in front of the houses of those Parliament members who are opposing such a nice bill that can improve the country. Ad when the elections are near, I will go to the constituency of such members and tell the people not to vote for such members.
Isn't that politics... asking people not to vote for a particular MP? Is Anna Hazare not gradually getting into politics?
No, not at all...there is no question of politics in this. We have to develop and improve the conditions in the country. Our country has got a bad name due to corruption...it is getting difficult for the aam aadmi to survive due to corruption...that is why we are doing this, so no question of politics in this.
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'It is our duty to wake people up'
You are saying this movement is not taking a political turn, so next year when Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab elections will come, will you go to such states and say that do not vote such people who are corrupt...will you connect this movement against corruption to the elections?
Yes, Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha are sacred bodies and only sacred people should go in it; if corrupt people go then it is a threat to democracy. That is why people have to be woken up and have to be told that they should not vote for the corrupt.
So if there is some corrupt contender in UP who has a criminal record against him, will you go & campaign there?
Of course.
So this is not politics?
What politics? If people elect such corrupt politicians in the assembly, who are a threat to the country, then it is our duty to wake up people.
Nitin Gadkari (Bharatiya Janata Party president) says if Anna leads us we are ready to join him. Now L K Advani is going on a yatra, don't you think your movement is being politicised. Political parties want to take advantage of you?
That will happen...this happened many times in my life...When I protested during Congress government, BJP & Shiv Sena leaders were roaming around me. That government went and BJP-Shiv Sena came to power...Cong graduated and the latter got a doctorate.
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'PM remote controlled by many in Congress'
Will you join any political yatra...like Advani's yatra?
Absolutely not. If BJP says they say they support Anna then they should bring Lokayukta bill in their states. First bring Lokayukta and then support.
So you don't plan to tie up with BJP? Some say you are seen closer to BJP because you speak against the Congress and this movement seems to be anti-Congress.
Not at all. If congress feels so, they should not take the path of lie. Since the beginning of the movement they spoke lies... starting from the joint committee. They then put me in jail...what was all this. Wasn't that a conspiracy?
Who conspired against you? Do you think there was a Cong MP behind this? You had named Chidambaram (home minister) earlier or the prime minister conspired against you? Do you think the PM was misled?
I feel Manmohan Singh is not the only PM, a lot of people inside the Congress think they are the PM.
Do you think the PM was misled?
Who considers the PM important? He is remote controlled by many people. He is not allowed to do anything.
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'The PM should learn from Indira Gandhi'
Sonia Gandhi wanted you to join the drafting committee when you started the fast in April. Do you think Sonia Gandhi was misled or do you think that she is also a part of this conspiracy?
If they want to run the government, whether it is Sonia Gandhi or Manmohan Singh they will have to take people along with them. There was one Indira Gandhi who worked for the poor in the country; she was elected as the PM. They should look at that.
You think the PM should learn from Indira Gandhi?
Absolutely
You are referred to as a follower of Mahatama Gandhi but a few days back you said that the corrupt should be hung. Gandhi never said that anybody should be hanged to death.
That is why I took those words back but there should be life in prison for such corrupt people.
You are suggesting that non-corrupt of BJP, Congress should come together and make one party and you will support them and lead them?
Absolutely. I will support them but not lead them because that's the only solution to make a strong nation. The good people of all parties can come together and I will tell the people of the country to support them.
So why don't you lead them?
No, I don't have the capacity. I am an ordinary man.
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'If back money is used to fund movement, I will leave'
There is an allegation on the funding of this movement. Arundhati Roy writes editorials questioning the funding of the movement. Do you think it's a matter of worry?
This is not a matter of worry for me. I will not allow black money in my movement against corruption.
If you get to know it's being used, how do you track funds in such a big movement? What will you do?
If I get to know black money is used, I will not stay in this movement.
You will not stay in the movement?
I don't like it. Till the time I will be associated with this movement, I want it to be clean. It should be spotless. People who write and say, are they honest? How can we believe they are honest? The colour of spectacles we wear, we see the world in that colour (Jis colour ka chashma hota hai ussi rang ka jag dikhai deta hai).
Have you told this to your team members? Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodhia and everyone else that the money that's used should not be black money and should not come from corporates or industrialists who are corrupt themselves.
Yes, I have given warning to all. Not only that, since our protest that started in April at Jantar Mantar, until now, we have a chartered accountant who audits the funds we use for this movement. I told my team that one copy of the audit should be with me and other members should have it too.
I am saying because people are asking about you breaking your fast with Vilasrao Deshmukh. The same Vilasrao Deshmukh who was named in the Adarsh scam. You are seen compromising with these kind of leaders.
That's not true. I did not ask anyone to send him. He was sent as a representative of the PM. I spoke to him as PM's representative. I am not suggesting that he is clean.
Do you really think our country can have a party full of clean people?
That is possible. All clean individuals of political parties can join it.