‘It’s a must to rid India of corruption’

Anti-corruption campaigner Anna Hazare on Sunday reiterated his resolve to launch an agitation to protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s failure to appoint a Lokpal even three years after he entered office.

Mr. Hazare, 80, made the announcement — the third time in less than a week — at the conclusion of a two-day meeting of his supporters at his native Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. He said he would start his agitation at the end of January or in early February in New Delhi.

But Mr. Hazare, who has withdrawn or cancelled agitations against the Modi government in the past, was not clear about the date. “This agitation has become imperative to make India corruption-free.”

Earlier, in Raipur, Mr. Hazare had said his agitation was not targeted at any individual or party, but against the dismal state of affairs in the country. On October 2, he criticised the Prime Minister and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his former protégé, while visiting the Raj Ghat in New Delhi to pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi.

In the past year, Mr. Hazare shot off letter after letter to the Prime Minister. He recently sent another, criticising Mr. Modi for failing to respond to his earlier ones and accusing his government of cheating the people by making hollow promises. “Mr. Modi had promised voters that he would deposit ₹15 lakh in every Indian’s account by bringing back black money from abroad. But there is no word on black money or the Lokpal,” Mr. Hazare said last week.