Social activist Anna Hazare alongwith Gen (retd) VK Singh and others taking out Jantantra Yatra at Ludhiana on Monday.
City Air News photo: Mandeep Kumar Verma
Ludhiana, April 1, 2013: 75-year-old social activist, Anna Hazare has called upon people to act wisely at the time of casting their votes in the forthcoming parliamentary elections scheduled to be held in the year 2014 to bring a change at the Centre.
Addressing a gathering at the UCPMA premises here on Monday under his ongoing nation-wide `Jantantra Yatra’, he said “use a right key to open the lock in the coming parliamentary elections”. He said there was a need of brining unity to bring a change in the existing democratic system in the country.
Showing an injury mark on his forehead, he said he had fought against Pakistan being an Indian Sepoy. He said now they had to fight for second freedom struggle to come out of the existing corrupt system in the country, adding the Britishers had left the nation way back in 1947 but “blacks” had replaced them. He remarked, the Britishers might had not looted the nation in 150 years that our own rulers had looted after the Independence.
Hazare said he had started campaign for people’s right on his own following which a big carvan of people joined him with passage of him. He recalled that he had shown exit doors to many corrupt government officials and even ministers over the period. He said his efforts had forced the government to bring RTI Act. Now he was fighting for the implementation of Jan Lokpal Bill and also bring other Acts such as “Gram Sabha Act”. He said the Gram Sabha Act would give rights to the villages as “Village Sansad” (Village Parliament) and the government would not be able to take possession of the farmers’ lands forcibly.
Speaking about his Jantantra Yatra, he said he had not started this nation-wide campaign for seeking power and anything else for him. He added he wanted to see a change in the existing political and democratic system in the larger interest of the countrymen.
Reacting to the media persons query about low turnout of people at his public meeting at Ludhiana, he said he had been running a campaign against corruption across the country. The low turnout of Ludhianvis at his public meeting indicated that there did not existed much corruption in Ludhiana therefore people did not prefer to attend the meeting, he quipped. However, he also observed that another reason might be that the local organisers had not done much publicity of the event.
In his address, Gen (retd) VK Singh said there was a need to bring change in the existing scenario across the country. He regretted that the politics had changed the overall scenario in the country. He also regretted that the political parties were following the policy of divide and rule, adding the situation would change only when people would stop getting disunited due to political parties.
Earlier, Hazare and his team members were given warm welcome at various places including Jalandhar Bypass, Clock Tower in the city.
Anna Hazare addressing a gathering at the UCPMA premises at Ludhiana on Monday.
City Air News photo: Mandeep Kumar Verma
Anna Hazare and team members being given warm welcome at Ludhiana on Monday.
City Air News photo: AJAY
Anna Hazare paying tributes at Kuka Martrys' Memorial at Ludhiana on Monday.
City Air News photo: AJAY