Politics news | Updated Aug 03, 2012 at 12:49pm IST
Live: We had no other option, says Team Anna
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New Delhi: 12:40 pm: Team Anna, who is set for its political stint, says that most of its supporters agree with the idea of going political. Team Anna member Prashant Bhushan said the team had no other option but to go political. "The same people who challenged us to a political fight are now saying we have political ambitions. We had no choice but to provide a political alternative," he said.
11:30 am: Team Anna member Manish Sisodia on Friday said that the team members were left with no option as the government wasn't listening to them. "We realised that the government was not listening to us. Look what has happened to Irom Sharmila, she was force fed for years. The government has many ways of ignoring people's opinions. The voice of the people does not matter to the government," Sisodia said.
Many India Against Corruption volunteers were missing on Friday morning from the fast venue, Jantar Mantar. They are upset with the movement going political.
Team Anna supporters have been giving mixed reactions. While Anna Hazare said he will stay out of it, his supporters say they want a revolution and not another political party.
"I'm against this decision. Anna should take it back. This is a movement and should remain that way," one of the supporters said. "I've come from Jaipur to request Anna to take the path of a revolution and not party politics," another supporter added.
Nine days after their fast, the anti-corruption activists, members of Team Anna, will end their agitation on Friday. This comes after Team Anna made a dramatic announcement of giving the country a political alternative.
As the government refused to budge, hopes of an encore of Ramlila Maidan, when union ministers were forced to come and appeal to Anna Hazare to call off his fast, faded away. So it took an appeal by two dozen eminent citizens for Team Anna to change track.
Union Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal said, "We are happy that they have decided to call off their fast, this really was an instrument of coercion being used by them."
There was an attempted referendum of sorts too, with Team Anna member Arvind kejriwal himself asking questions to the gathered public about the road ahead.
"What should we be doing, should there be a political alternative," Kejriwal asked the people gathered at Jantar Mantar.
Questions will be raised about what has been achieved by Team Anna through this nine-day fast as to whether this was a strategic mistake and is the move to call off the fast simply an exit route.
The strategy now is to look for a political alternative, but Team Anna isn't sure whether that alternative is launching a political party.
"We are seeking a revolution, how we can change the way politics is done in the country, launch a parallel form of politics in the country," Team Anna member Prashant Bhushan said.
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