As Sushilkumar Shinde begins his innings as Home Minister, one of his first challenges will be how to deal with the Anna agitation. Amidst reports of the deteriorating health of many of the team leaders, government sources have indicated that health concerns will not prompt the government to negotiate with the activists, who are fasting against corruption. Speaking to NDTV, Mr Shinde said that Anna is being taken advantage of by "people around him". Though his term as power minister concluded with India's worst blackout, Mr Shinde said that he ranks himself as an excellent power minister.
(This interview was recorded before the explosions in Pune.)