Accepting the request of the Delhi police, civil rights activist Anna Hazare and his supporters on Tuesday decided to shift the venue of Wednesday's fast from Jantar Mantar to Rajghat. The fast is in protest against the police crackdown on Baba Ramdev and his supporters at Ramlila Maidan.
The police said it was not possible to grant permission for the daylong hunger strike at Jantar Mantar as prohibitory orders were imposed there to ensure peace.
Civil society members of the joint draft committee on the Lok Pal Bill Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan and social activist Kiran Bedi maintained that denial of permission to hold a peaceful protest violated the fundamental rights of the citizens guaranteed in the Constitution.
They said they were not fighting the police nor had any intention for confrontation when the objective was to hold a peaceful protest.
Senior advocate and co-chairperson of the Lokpal Bill committee Shanti Bhushan on Monday wrote to the Delhi police seeking permission to hold the fast and warned against any attempt to prevent the people from joining the dharna.
Meanwhile, civil society members on the drafting committee of the Lokpal Bill resolved to stick to their task at the panel's next meeting unfazed by the tirade launched against them by Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal.
They lashed out at Mr. Sibal for doubting their commitment to the drafting committee, particularly when they had written to chairman Pranab Mukherjee informing him of their inability to attend the June 6 meeting.
Mr. Shanti Bhushan, in his second letter to Mr. Mukherjee on Tuesday, expressed the views of the civil society members on important issues related to the Bill and sought his response to them.
He said the government should ensure that the Lokpal Bill was in tune with the U.N. Convention against Corruption and that required bringing the Prime Minister, judges, MPs and officials irrespective of rank under the Lokpal's ambit.
He pointed out that the convention provided for investigation and prosecution apart from freezing, seizure and confiscation of the proceeds of corruption and for that the anti-corruption body had to be independent.
Hegde to attend meet
Mangalore Staff Correspondent reports:
Karnataka Lokayukta N. Santosh Hegde on Tuesday said he would attend the draft committee meeting on the Lokpal Bill in New Delhi on June 15 and 16. Speaking to The Hindu over telephone from Bangalore, he said the civil society members had decided to attend the meeting.
