NEW DELHI: Activist Anna Hazare's threat to fast to death unless the government amends an anti-corruption bill has sparked debate about whether the traditional Indian form of protest has any place in a modern democracy.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called Hazare's hunger strike ``misconceived,'' but frustrated demonstrators insisted the fast that began Tuesday was the only way to get the attention of an unresponsive government neck-deep in corruption scandals.
Hazare's repeated hunger strikes are part of a hallowed protest tradition made famous by independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi, who coined the term ``Satyagraha'' or nonviolent resistance and fasted repeatedly against British rule.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called Hazare's hunger strike ``misconceived,'' but frustrated demonstrators insisted the fast that began Tuesday was the only way to get the attention of an unresponsive government neck-deep in corruption scandals.
Hazare's repeated hunger strikes are part of a hallowed protest tradition made famous by independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi, who coined the term ``Satyagraha'' or nonviolent resistance and fasted repeatedly against British rule.
No comments:
Post a Comment