New Delhi: While the Congress party had always been accusing Team Anna of having a hidden political agenda, its August 3 announcement to launch a new political party has met with mixed reactions.
Veteran journalist turned social activist Dr. V.P. Vaidik has ridiculed Anna Hazare’s announcement regarding formation of a new party.
According to him, Hazare is often called a Gandhian. But the fact is that while Gandhi wanted to disband the Congress party after independence and continue with agitation, Hazare has disbanded the movement and launch a party.
“If he wanted to launch a party, he should have done in last August when they had a huge support. The lions have become lambs now,” Vaidik commented.
Some youth who genuinely wanted to get associated with the cause of fighting corruption are feeling let down at the turn of events. “I was actively associated with the Jan Lokpal movement of Anna Hazare. I am hugely disappointed to find they have abandoned a movement without achieving the goal. Imagine Gandhi disbanding freedom struggle before attaining independence for the country!” said an upset Delhi University student Vineet Saluja.
Vineet’s views are shared by many. There are many who would rather be seen being associated with a movement than a political party, whose ideology, agenda and leadership are still to be revealed, at the most the most ardent of Anna supporters would say was that they would decide whom to vote for when elections come.
“Let them form the party first. No doubt BJP is like B team of the Congress. I have great regard for Anna, but I cannot commit my vote to anyone since I will take the decision seeing who their candidate in the fray is and what is his agenda,” said Neha Chaudhary, a young Gurgaon-based executive.
While the Congress party is happy that the monkey is off their shoulders, BJP is finding it difficult to react to the development realising that the new political party may made a dent in its votes. “We support anyone who’s against corruption, be it Anna Hazare or Baba Ramdev,” is all that the BP president Nitin Gadkari was willing to say.
Arvind Kejriwal, however, justifies the decision to float a new party. “All parties are corrupt. Our movement is for decentralisation of power, power in the hands of the common man, power to people… Our movement is for the change of the system and not for change of government. Ninety per cent of the people want us to provide a political alternative,” Kejriwal explains.
