Politics is full of ironies. Yesterday's opponents and friends reverse roles. This is true for the most famous crusader of twenty first century India. When Anna Hazare had launched his agitation against corruption in high places four years ago, some Congress leaders had seen the hand of RSS and BJP in Hazare's fasts in Delhi. BJP's leaders Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley in parliament had thundered in parliament that the Upadhya government was reluctant to have a strong machinery to fight the menace of briberies and cronyism. Congress tried to find whether Anna had been a member of RSS, especially as RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had supported the crusader. Anna's staunch campaigner and translator was Arvind Kejriwal and a high profile supporter was former army chief V. K. Singh.
Now BJP is ruling the country and Kejriwal has swept to power in the capital. Hazare has returned to the city of his agitation. Apart from a handful of old faithful like Medha Patkar, there is a new crowd around the octogenarian, and his first grievance is against the changes being made by Narendra Modi to the UPA's new land acquisition law. He has also promised to agitate for early implementation of the corruption fighting Lokpal institution which has not yet been implemented by Modi during the first nine months of prime ministership.
Hazare has said he would welcome the support of his old opponent Congress and also those who had fallen out with him like Kejriwal and Kiran Bedi, but he would not allow them to share the stage. The Congress which is fiercely opposing the amendments made through an ordinance as anti-farmer, will be doing the fight in parliament. But Congress activists from Haryana and Rajasthan had quietly joined the farmers march from Palwal in Haryana to Delhi for an agitation with Hazare. Former BJP ideologue Govindacharya is part of the agitation.
Hazare has not yet announced an indefinite fast as he did while demanding Lokpal three years ago. He wants the crescendo to build up to gather more anti Modi forces. Meanwhile Modi is drawing up strategies to prove he is not anti farmer and take the sting out of Hazare's agitation.
Tailpiece: Modi is continuing his cautious policy on appointments as there are six Raj Bhavans without full time governors, and more than 70 public sector companies without full time chief executives. Modi has told core team that credentials should be fully checked for each nominee and that is taking time.
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