It's just 7am, and Anna Hazare has barely had chance to affix his trademark starched white cotton "Gandhi cap". The social activist would never dare liken himself to the "great soul" who helped to secure India's independence from Britain. But in recent months, the names of Mr Hazare and Gandhi have found themselves intertwined in the same paragraphs of newspaper reports as the 74-year-old has sought to use the tools of peaceful mass protest and hunger strike to secure his aims. Whereas Gandhi wanted an India free from Britain, Mr Hazare's wish is for an India free from corruption, and his target is the Indian government itself. He has termed it the country's second struggle for independence.
"Nowadays, whether people are poor or rich, they are all very angry and have had enough of corruption," Mr Hazare tells The Independent on Sunday, in his first interview with the international media. "That is why they have supported our campaign."
Perhaps like the man whose principles he seeks to follow, Mr Hazare is something of an unlikely hero for the countless millions of Indians whose lives are soured every day by corruption, whether that means being forced to pay bribes to obtain basic services or to observe the scandals that surrounded last year's Commonwealth Games or the kleptocratic nature of many politicians. His solution is the establishment of an official ombudsman, or Lokpal, with the power to investigate not just the alleged misbehaviour of low-ranking officials, but senior bureaucrats and politicians up to the Prime Minister. More...
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