Pune:
Anna Hazare supporters are giving MPs with homes in and around the city some sleepless nights. Social activists had declared they would demonstrate before the homes of Prakash Jawdekar, the BJP's Rajya Sabha MP, Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil from Shirur and Gajanan Babar from Maval, both from Shiv Sena. Following this, Jawdekar and Babar called Hazare activists in the city on telephone, requesting them not to demonstrate in front of their homes as they too supported the Jan Lokpal Bill.
Earlier, Hazare announced agitation at the gates of each and every MP in the country to appeal to them to vote in favour of Jan Lokpal Bill. Social organisations such as Beggar Help Line and India Against Corruption (IAC) and the city unit of BJP held protests before Suresh Kalmadi's house.
Gandhiji's famous bhajan was sung as Raghupati Raghav Rajaram...Saansadonko Sanmati De Bhagwan, which means God give good sense to these MPs to vote in favour of the bill. The bhajan was sung by activists before Baramati MP Supriya Sule and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar in front of Modibaug, their housing society on Ganesh Khind Road, Shivajinagar. Both of them were not at their homes.
B B Somani, conveyor, IAC, who is also coordinating the rallies in the city for Hazare, said, "We received a letter from Patil after our first agitation before Kalmadi house was made on Monday evening," Somani said. "Jawdekar and Babar also telephoned us and requested us not to hold demonstrations in front of their houses. Hazare had given us clear directives to go to the houses of each and every MP, irrespective of the party they belong to. We will convey the messages of Patil, Jawdekar and Babar to our seniors in Delhi."
Aniket Deshmukh, who looks after the IAC network in the city, said Jawdekar and Babar had been given a time frame to give an official letter on their respective official MP letterheads, stating their commitment to the bill. "Both have assured us they will respond. We shall see what to do next," Deshmukh said.
Trupti Desai, Bhumata Brigade, said that Babar had given a verbal support to the agitation for Hazare's hunger strike which is not really enough. He has to submit official letter for his support and do it accordingly in the Lokasabha mandate for the Janlokpal bill.
MPs speak
MP Prakash Jawdekar said, "I am in Delhi and nobody is at home at my Gokhale Nagar residence. There is no difference in my opinion and the stand taken by Anna, then what is the point of coming to my place for agitation. It is now up to the activists of IAC, if they still want to visit my Pune residence, despite my request," he said.
Gajanan Babar said the local activists Maruti Bhapkar has gone to his home on Monday "I had already given a letter of support to the Jan Lokpal Bill. There is no need for others to come to my place for the same reason."
Shivajirao Patil, in a letter to Anna Hazare on August 22, said he would extend his support to the agitation for the Lokpal Bill in the Loksabha. "I have also appealed to the other MPs to take the nationwide agitation more seriously," he said.