Anna Hazare losing relevance: Bal Thackeray

By Indo Asian News Service

Mumbai, March 27 (IANS) Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray Tuesday questioned the relevance of the anti-corruption crusade by veteran activist Anna Hazare and his team members.
In an editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamna, Thackeray said that for the first time since Hazare's "flop show" in Mumbai in December last year, Team Anna had again featured in the news.
"The Team's members like Prashant Bhushan faced public ire, Arvind Kejriwal was greeted with slippers, Kiran Bedi's corrupt activities tumbled out, Swami Agnivesh was out of the Team when the agitation was at a peak, India Against Corruption's Mumbai head is embroiled in questionable activities," Thackeray said in the edit.
Referring to the media, he said that the media which used to grab every word uttered by Hazare and his team, now barely take note of developments like the revival of the campaign from Jantar Mantar last Sunday.
The Sena chief said that it was expected Hazare would lead the anti-corruption brigade in the campaign during the recent elections in five states, "but he remained in and out of hospitals."
Though Hazare and Team Anna members campaigned informally in some parts, it was in Uttarakhand that they supported the Bharatiya Janata Party's then chief minister B.C. Khanduri.
However, the voters did not endorse his claims and the BJP government (an ally of the Shiv Sena, both in Maharashtra and in the NDA) headed by Khanduri was trounced in the elections.
Similarly, Thackeray pointed out that in Uttar Pradesh, where Mulayam Singh Yadav had exposed Team Anna's scams, the people wholeheartedly voted for his Samajwadi Party, which garnered a landslide victory last month.
"It was widely expected that Team Anna would take lessons from these, but that did not happen. Last Sunday, when Hazare revived his agitation, it elicited only lukewarm response in New Delhi's Jantar Mantar," Thackeray said.
He pointed out that the unbridled comments by some Team Anna members - (like calling Sharad Yadav a thief) - invited the ire of the entire Lok Sabha. Yet, Team Anna refused to improve itself, Thackeray lamented.

We, the people who support Anna's campaign would not expect that Bal Thackeray or for that matter any Thackeray would support Anna. It is against people like them and Mulayam Singh Yadav that Anna is fighting.
Yes, we agree that Mulayam Singh has won this election. But that is because people have no choice.
Whether it is SP, BSP, Congress or BJP, they have all fielded corrupt candidates with criminal back ground.
It is the failure of our electoral system that we have to chose from only corrupt, criminal candidates.
We are not given the choice of rejecting all the candidates.
But Anna and Swami Ramdeo our Supreme Courts and a whole lot of people are awakening the people and a day will come in the next few years where these criminals will be prevented from standing for elections.
The feelings of the people against our corrupt leaders are best expressed by this this letter addressed to the Almighty by a devotee, Satyen Hora, recently

Dear Lord,

You took my favourite actors.. Shammi Kapoor and Dev Anand

You took my favourite actress.. .. Madhubala

You took my favourite singer.... Mohammed Rafi

You took my favourite cricketer.... Pataudi

And you have taken my favourite Gazal Singer....Jagjeet Singh

Though you must be knowing but I just wanted to let you know that my favourite politicians are:

Mayawati, Jayalalita, Sonia, Karunanidhi, Lalu prasad, Advani, Mulayam Singh, Sharad Pawar and Chidambaram, Bal and Raj Thackeray...

Yours obediently,