Anna Hazare to go on indefinite fast for Lokpal Bill from tomorrow

Anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare today announced he would undertake an indefinite fast for a Lokpal Bill beginning tomorrow and continue his protest fast till the anti-graft bill was introduced, reports quoting news channel IBN said.

It has been over two years, but the government had done nothing on the Jan Lokpal Bill, Hazare told IBN.

Only a debate was needed in the Rajya Sabha over the Lokpal Bill, but there had been no progress on the bill.

Hazare said he would go on an indefinite fast from tomorrow in Ralegan Siddhi for the Lokpal Bill.

The Gandhian plans to launch his indefinite hunger strike for a strong Lokpal Bill at Yadavbaba temple in Ralegan Siddhi from tomorrow.

Anna has called on the centre to "show courage" in bringing in the Bill in the winter session of Parliament, and has, in a letter to prime minister Manmohan Singh, expressed displeasure over the central government's failure to bring in the anti-graft legislation.

Hazare said he had received a letter from parliamentary affairs minister V Narayanasamy on Tuesday. In the letter, the minister had mentioned various steps taken by the government to bring in the Lokpal Bill.

Expressing his displeasure over the government's efforts, Anna said, the correspondence had been going on for the last two years but without any result. The centre, he said, had assured that the bill would be presented in the Budget session of parliament.

The selection committee had passed it on 23 November 2012, but nothing happened even in the monsoon session also. The nation now demanded result and not the reason for delaying it and that was why he would be go on a hunger strike.

He also appealed to people to exert pressure on government through non-violent ways for the passage of the Bill.