Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare’s premature withdrawal of his three-day fast and the proposed ‘jail bharo andolan’ on Wednesday, caught his supporters in Pune unawares.
Rallying behind Hazare, who had become weak over the last few days, his supporters described the move as a ‘strategic retreat’. The small group of India Against Corruption (IAC) volunteers who had been agitating since Tuesday, near the river bed, near the Baba Bhide Bridge off Deccan, were both shocked and dismayed at the sudden turn of events.
Attention was riveted on the large television screens put up at the venue and after the announcement by Hazare, many were seen leaving the pandal. Civic activist Vivek Velankar called Hazare’s move a “strategic retreat, which at times is necessary for the long run. The thin crowd in Pune and Mumbai, showed that the message did not reach properly to the masses.
This strategic retreat would give the team to plan a proper game plan and prepare for the longer battle that we have to fight in the future,’’ he said. Velankar’s viewpoint was echoed by another activist Girish Deshpande who felt that the overriding concern about Hazare’s health compelled him to withdraw his fast. Both were confident that the movement for a strong Lokpal would bounce back with vigour.
At the venue, youngster Swarochi Joshi, could hardly conceal his disappointment about the abrupt end on Wednesday. “Anna’s health concern must have forced him to call off the fast, but rest assured, we are with Anna,’’ he said. Joshi, also said that over 5,000 people in Pune who had registered for the jail bharo andolan to start from Saturday and IAC volunteers would inform the registered people about the suspension of the same. He said in the interim period, IAC volunteers would be undertaking massive outreach programmes to build up a mass base for future movements.
