Mahatma Anna Hazare ?

Will Tihar Jail make Anna the new age Gandhi?
Government’s kneejerk reactions to Anna’s subtle nonviolent manoeuvring has put the UPA II in a tight spot. It has made a bigger hero out of Anna.

As with Baba Ramdev’s satyagraha so with Anna’s movement. That seemed to be the logic of the Government. But Anna proved his mettle as the true wily satyagrahi and used his calm judgement to outmanoeuvre the stupid government’s brute-like moves.

Public pressure made the government to eat humble pie and order the release Anna. But Anna has used the release-order as a bargaining counter to bring the government to its knees.

This move has striking similarity with the 1919 Champaran Satyagraha of Gandhi. Fighting for poor,oppressed peasants he was sentenced to jail by the British. But under intense public pressure the court had to ask Gandhi to deposit a bail amount and leave. Gandhi refused to pay the amount and preferred to be jailed. Finally the court had to release Gandhi unconditionally. The people of Champaran anointed him as Mahatma. And Bapu was born.

Few facts stare at your face as the Anna episode unfolds.
· Government has no clear cut strategy to counter the movement unleashed by Anna.
· Government has a bunch of immature advisers
· It has put democratic and ethical/moral norms on the side by tackling Anna.
· Initiative on corruption and proactive action is increasingly being appropriated by Civil Society and the Judiciary.
· The Anna bandwagon grows day by day, by each misaction of the government. It has portents of becoming a monolithic mass movement, and may cost the UPA 2 its power seat.

Will the Tihar sentence make a new age Gandhi out of Anna? That only time will tell. But one thing is for sure. It is the fumbling UPA 2 government which will make a mahatma out of Anna Hazare.