Team Anna member Kiran Bedi on Monday advised Swami Agnivesh to file an FIR if he felt that the controversial video in which he purportedly asked someone to act tough with social activist Anna Hazare was fake but the religious leader said his spiritual values did not allow him to do so.
The Congress on Monday dared social activist Anna Hazare to contest from the Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha seat in New Delhi after the latter released findings of his team's survey in Union Minister Kapil Sibal's constituency on the Lokpal issue
The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a PIL seeking action against Anna Hazare and his team members for allegedly showing disrespect to the national flag during his agitation for the Lokpal bill last year.
With just three days left for Anna Hazare's fast to commence, members of India Against Corruption are running from pillar to post to secure requisite clearances, reports Toral Varia Deshpande
Softening his stand on the Lokpal issue, Anna Hazare on Saturday suggested moving ahead with the amended Bill presented in the Rajya Sabha and said improvements in the legislation could be brought through amendments later.
In a sarcastic attack on Anna Hazare and his team, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Monday asked the social activist not to take any credit for "the anti-Congress sentiments" in the country created by rising prices.
Activist Swami Agnivesh on Saturday alleged that Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal has siphoned off over Rs 80 lakh, donated by people for Anna Hazare's agitation, by diverting it to a trust run by him.
In a sudden climb down, Anna Hazare on Wednesday made a surprise announcement of calling off his campaign to fill jails from Friday and ended his fast.
Ahead of the indefinite fast by Anna Hazare and his team, the government on Tuesday highlighted the slew of measures taken by it over the last one year to tackle corruption which include curbing the discretionary powers of ministers and time-bound decisions on prosecution requests.
Seeking a coalition against corruption, activist Kiran Bedi on Sunday shared dais with Ramdev though Anna Hazare and other erstwhile Team Anna members kept away from the yoga guru's protest on black money and Lokpal.
Delhi Police on Monday sought the services of two magistrates from Delhi government ahead of the protest by Anna Hazare and his team who have announced they would go ahead with their fast against corruption despite denial of permission for the agitation.
Within the Hazare group, serious differences have cropped up with Justice N Santosh Hegde and Swami Agnivesh wanting him to withdraw the fast, saying it was now counterproductive. But others like Bedi and Kejriwal, who are seen as hardliners with their own agenda, are said to be resisting the move and not allowing the 73-year-old social activist from Maharashtra to break the fast.
Veteran activist Anna Hazare on Monday night defended his key associate Kiran Bedi from the allegations of "air travel corruption", pointing fingers at a "gang of four" in the ruling party being behind the campaign against his team.
A day after Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee trashed Team Anna's allegations of corruption against him, its key member Arvind Kejriwal said he should face an independent probe to prove his innocence.
Some of the prominent United Progressive Alliance ministers on Sunday came under fire from Team Anna at the fast venue of Anna Hazare with the activist's close aide Arvind Kejriwal claiming that cases could have been registered against 14 ministers if there was a Lokpal.
Bollywood veteran actor Anupam Kher visited Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority to express his support to Team Anna and passage of Jan Lokpal Bill. Toral Varia Deshpande speaks to Anupam Kher.
Against the backdrop of the allegations that Anna Hazare has links with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Arvind Kejriwal, a key Team Anna member on Monday met representatives of Muslim organisations to clear the 'misconceptions'.
Team Anna on Tuesday expressed disappointment over the exclusion of lower bureaucracy and the Criminal Bureau of Investigation's probe wing from under the Lokpal's purview in the draft report of Parliamentary Standing Committee, but opposed bringing private NGOs and the media under its ambit. Reacting to the panel's draft report, activist Arvind Kejriwal sought to remind the government of the Parliamentary resolution that led to Anna Hazare ending his fast on August 28.
Expressing dismay over the government's stand over the Lokpal Bill, former Indian Police Service officer and Team Anna member Kiran Bedi said, "Who do we talk to? Usually talks happen with those who can decide something. Who do we talk to in this country? This is the big question."
Casting doubts on government's intentions over the Lokpal Bill, Anna Hazare on Sunday accused it of repeatedly betraying his team and said he is firm with his agitation plan if an effective anti-graft legislation was not passed in the ongoing winter session of Parliament.
Team Anna on Monday asked the Congress to make public expenses incurred for hiring choppers for the just-concluded assembly elections to five states, particularly for party chief Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul. Anna Hazare and his close aide Arvind Kejriwal demanded that the expenses should be made public.
Targeting the political class, Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress of misusing the Central Bureau of Investigation while in power. He also took on Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee for not being vocal about Lokpal like she was on the issue of Foreign Direct Investment in retail.
In an apparent answer to crusader Anna Hazare's team mobilising the masses suffering corruption of the lower level bureaucracy, the government has quietly kicked of drafting of a Bill for creating a mechanism for the public services grievance redressal.
Slamming the government for the police action against the Gandhian and his team, political parties accused the government of stifling the legitimate rights of the people and described it as a "sad day for Indian democracy".
Team Anna member Kiran Bedi on Thursday contended that the Parliamentary Standing Committee recommendations on Lokpal Bill will only help in making the ombdusman an "Enquiry Pal" with no powers at all. Bedi said Anna Hazare and his supporters did not fight for such an anti-corruption watchdog.
Talking to media persons in New Delhi, Pawar said that Team Anna had the right to express their views on the anti-graft bill, but it was the prerogative of the Parliament to determine whether to incorporate those views in the bill or not.
Interestingly, his sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra was present in the Speaker's gallery to watch her brother speak on the issue of corruption and Hazare's agitation. Priyanka has just returned from New York where their mother Sonia Gandhi is recuperating after surgery.
As droves of people flocked to Ramlila Maidan to voice their support for Anna Hazare, lack of water and sanitation facilities at the venue tested the resolve of quite a few supporters.
Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said their fight for a strong Jan Lokpal Bill was in the decisive stage and advocated the path of non-violence for achieving the objective.
You cannot fight a defiant person by being defiant in politics. This is a lesson the prime minister and his team have to learn if they want to remain in power, says Aslam Hunani.
'We are confused because the UPA government has cheated us. The question before us is, should we request the people to not vote for the UPA or should we not? Shall we not hit the streets again at all? There are many options before us. Each option has many implications for our movement,' Arvind Kejriwal confesses to Sheela Bhatt.
Rediff.com reporters spoke to employees of the lower bureaucracy to know what they think of all the commotion surrounding their inclusion in the Lokpal bill.
As Parliamentary Standing Committee went back on some of its recommendations on Lokpal Bill, Team Anna member Kiran Bedi on Thursday night slammed it as an effort to make the ombdusman an "enquiry-pal" and said it confirms her remarks that politicians wear several masks.
Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal alleged on Monday that the Union government's decision to allow foreign direct investment in the retail sector is linked to corruption.
Team Anna member Kiran Bedi on Wednesday asked as to what was stopping ruling Congress from declaring its resolve to create an effective Lokpal through a special session of Parliament or an ordinance in case Parliament by any chance is stalled.
Arvind Kejriwal, who has alleged that phones of Team Anna members are being tapped, on Sunday demanded that the government answer whether it considered them as a threat to national security.
Taking on a section of political class that questioned the need for civil society to contribute in law making, Team Anna member N Santosh Hegde on Friday sought annual auditing of Parliamentarians to assess their performance.
In an interview with rediff.com's Sahim Salim social activist Medha Patkar said that Team Anna expected a deadlock between the Congress and BJP when the BJP took a stance on the matter.
Team Anna member and former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice (retd) N Santosh Hegde on Tuesday appealed to Anna Hazare to end his eight-day fast, saying everyone is "honestly" concerned about his health.
Team Anna member Kiran Bedi on Sunday said the Lokpal, if made a law, will create fear among wrongdoers like the way the "chopping of hands of thieves" does in UAE. Addressing protesters at the fast venue of Anna Hazare and yoga guru Ramdev, Bedi also asked people not to vote for those politicians who are opposed to Lokpal in the next elections.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances