BANGALORE: The people of the city gathered at Freedom Park in huge numbers in support of anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare demanding a stronger Lokpal Bill from the government. More than 100 citizens registered themselves to go on an indefinite hunger strike at Freedom Park and many others continued to volunteer to fast throughout the day. Organised by India Against Corruption, the protest saw the participation of former Lokayukta Justice N Santosh Hegde, president of FKCCI J Bangera, chairman of All India Banks Association Nadaf, president of Rai-tha Sangha Kodihalli Chandrashekhar and veteran freedom fighter H S Doreswamy.Addressing the protesters, Santosh Hegde called the early morning arrest of Anna Hazare at Delhi ‘convenient’ and ‘unconstitutional.’ Meanwhile, the BJP condemned the arrest Anna Hazare and demanded Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to tender an apology to the people of the country and release Hazare immediately. Speaking to reporters, theparty spokesman C T Ravi accused the UPA government of trying to hide its scams by scuttling people’s movements. A number of BJP workers staged a protest at Basaveshwara Circle. IAC to mobilise more supportAfter organising a series of protests last week in the form of bike rallies and walks, India Against Corruption (IAC) has also organised a bruhat padayatra from Freedom Park to New Delhi starting on August 17. Speaking to The New Indian Express, Prithvi Reddy, coordinator for India Against Corruption, Karnataka, said that in order to mobilise more support from citizens on August 18, they are planning to urge people to take a day off from work and participate in ‘Bharat Seva’. The city also saw protests from other organisations, such as Swabhimana and Socialist Unity Centre of India. These protests were also held at Freedom Park and Malleswaram.Demanding the immediate release of Anna Hazare, the Communist Party of India (CPI) called upon the party units and people to protest against the undemocratic action of the government. “It is illegal and undemocratic. One may differ with him, but everyone agrees that there is a need for a strong Lokpal Bill to curb corruption and include the Prime Minister under the Lokpal Act,” the party said.FKCCI’s support In the meantime, the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) has supported Anna Hazare’s movement against corruption which has spread like wildfire in the country. President of FKCCI J R Bangera, in a press released, said, “The people’s resentment is now public and it has acquired a single and definite direction to cleanse the system.”
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