Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday spoke to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, who is on an indefinite fast in support of his demand for immediate ceasefire in the Sri Lankan army's offensive against the LTTE.
As Team Anna on Wednesday launched an indefinite fast raising the pitch against the United Progressive Alliance government on the issue of corruption, villagers from his native place, Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district, 75 km north of Pune, joined in support, holding a protest.
The United Progressive Alliance government had faced criticism from all quarters over the detention of Anna Hazare hours before the activist was scheduled to go on an indefinite fast.
Rediff.com correspondents across the country spoke to the aam admi, unanimously battered by corruption in one way or the other, on how they perceive the episode. While some are unaware, others think it is the much-needed remedy to counter corruption.
Protests erupted in the national capital for the fourth day Friday against the acquittal of Congress leader Sajjan Kumar in anti-Sikh riots case, with one of the victims starting indefinite fast and a group blocking a busy road triggering huge traffic snarl.
A day after being released from jail, rights activist Irom Chanu Sharmila was on Friday arrested once again by police under the same charge of attempt to commit suicide by means of her indefinite fast.
Delhi was put on heightened vigil on Wednesday night with deployment of armed police personnel across the city in the wake of the bomb blasts in Pune.
Team Anna on Saturday clubbed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee with 13 other cabinet ministers, whom they accused of corruption, which the Congress dismissed as "unsubstantiated averments" that need not be responded to.
A legal tussle between Team Anna and the government of India now seems certain after the social activist's proposed indefinite fast against corruption was forcibly curbed by the might of the government. Vicky Nanjappa explains the nitty-gritty of such a case before the apex court.
Peeved at being denied permission to hold an indefinite fast from August 16 on a venue desired by him, Anna Hazare on Saturday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, accusing the government of "crushing" the fundamental rights of people.
Mandsaur, the epicentre of the agitation, has remained relatively peaceful even as farmer protests have spilled over to new areas of MP.
Arvind Kejriwal speaks out on Congress leader Digvijay Singh, Robert Vadra and the Gandhi family in this exclusive interview with Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
Sahim Salim captures the mood at Ramlila Ground where Baba Ramdev launched his indefinite fast against corruption and black money on Saturday.
Unrelenting in her demand that work on the Sardar Sarovar Dam should be halted immediately, Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar's indefinite fast entered the eighth day Wednesday.
According to sources in the government, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is firmly against activist Anna Hazare's demand for formally constituting a joint committee, with representatives from the civil society and the government, to draft a strong anti-corruption bill. Hazare has been on an indefinite fast in New Delhi since Wednesday to press for his demand.Mukherjee has stopped the government from issuing a notification to make the joint committee formal.
Stepping up pressure, Anna Hazare on Thursday announced a new agitation of filling up jails (jail bharo) from January 1 if Parliament does not pass a strong Lokpal law, amid indications that it is unlikely to be done before the scheduled conclusion of the current winter session.
Malik began his fast outside the JKLF headquarters at Maisuma in the heart of summer capital Srinagar on Wednesday against what he called 'the economic blockade of Kashmir' and harassment of 'minority community members in Jammu region'. As Malik's condition worsened on Thursday morning, doctors advised his immediate hospitalisation.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on Tuesday urged activist Anna Hazare and his associates to contest general elections. "They should contest the elections so that we all know who has the support of the people," he said. Hazare and members of his team have gone on an indefinite fast at Jantar Mantar in Delhi to seek the implementation of the Lokpal Bill.
Stalemate over the controversial Koodankulam nuclear power project continued despite efforts by the Prime Minister's emissary to break the ice even as the indefinite fast by locals demanding scrapping of the project entered the 10th day on Tuesday.
Politicians, legislators and bureaucrats from Maharashtra played a major role in facilitating talks between Team Anna and the government, reports Toral Varia
Swami Agnivesh, one of the 22 members of the core committee set up by activist Anna Hazare, claimed on Monday that there has been no response from the Centre so far to end the activist's indefinite fast against corruption. "In the last seven days, we have never had anyone mediating between us and the government about the Jan Lokpal Bill," he said. He rejected media reports about the government roping in any mediators.
Veteran social activist Anna Hazare refused to come out of Tihar jail on Tuesday evening saying he wants an unconditional release and unconditional permission to go ahead with his indefinite fast at Jai Prakash Narayan Park in New Delhi.
Here's what your favourite celebrities are tweeting.
Reacting strongly to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement that hunger strikes were not a way to solve the problem of corruption, activist Anna Hazare's team on Monday called him an "insensitive" person.
Senior Bhartiya Janata Party vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has condemned the manner in which the Congress and United Progressive Alliance ministers launched an all-out attack against Anna Hazare on Sunday --less than 48 hours before he embarks on the second indefinite fast -- to press for total acceptance of Jan Lokpal bill.
Activist Anna Hazare and the government seem to be headed for a confrontation with the Gandhian on Saturday deciding to go ahead with his indefinite fast from August 16 for a "strong" Lokpal.
Rajiv assassination convicts hospitalised
Castigating Congress leaders and ministers for allegedly targeting social activist Anna Hazare and yoga guru Ramdev on the Lokpal issue, Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday alleged that the Centre was behaving like an autocrat.
Facing Anna Hazare's threat to go on an indefinite fast from August 16, the government and the Congress on Thursday hardened its stand, making it clear to activists involved in the drafting the Lokpal Bill that Parliament is the final authority in making laws.
It was 5 pm on Saturday when the government took the tough decision of disrupting yoga guru Baba Ramdev's indefinite fast with consent from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi. The decision was taken after all efforts to cajole the yoga guru failed and he maintained a hard stance on the practical steps by the government on his demand for bringing back black money from abroad, sources said
A kind of politics of fear has crept into the whole drama surrounding yoga guru Baba Ramdev's threat of going on an indefinite fast from Saturday principally against black money stashed abroad, reports Sahim Salim.
Indeed there is an extraordinarily stark contrast between the mansion in South Mumbai and the reality of Golibar -- with its fragile, tiny one room homes set amid open sewage channels in narrow lanes.
Dynastic rule in a party is curse for our political system and has to be rooted out, activist Arvind Kejriwal said on Friday, urging the youths to grab this "last chance" to bring a change.
Prasanna D Zore and photographer Sanjay Sawant travel to Ralegan Siddhi, the Maharashtra village where Gandhian Anna Hazare started his long journey in the path of social activism
Anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare on Wednesday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, slamming the reaction of his government and the Congress to his indefinite fast on Lokpal Bill issue, and urged him to show courage to take unprecedented steps to fight the menace.
The government is planning a special Parliament session in mid January next year for the Lokpal Bill as the Bharatiya Janata Party has a majority in the Rajya Sabha, sources told rediff.com.
Under fire from a section of erstwhile Team Anna members for deciding to join politics, activist Arvind Kejriwal has said there could not be 100 per cent unanimity on any decision and "very dear" friends who are opposed to it are "small in number".
Paving the way for the formation of a political party, Team Anna on Monday disbanded itself and decided not to have any more talks with the government on the Lokpal issue.
Against the backdrop of indefinite fast by Anna Hazare coming to an end, Law Minister Salman Khurshid has said the government is "much better equipped" now to deal with such situations even as he underlined that the Lokpal will be created before the 2014 elections.
The official twitter handle of India Against Corruption as well as its official website on Thursday put a poser to the public asking "should Annaji provide a political alternative to the country? Reply YES or NO to this tweet?"
