Anna campaign has served purpose: PM

On Board PM's Special Plane, Oct 20: Noting that Anna Hazare's movement has "served its purpose", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the government was working to put in place an effective Lokpal which would be an assurance to people that corruption "cannot flourish as a way of life".

He said corruption was hurting development, governance besides the poor people and his government was committed to "clean up the system".

"Well, I would not like to use this opportunity to criticise any individual," he told journalists when asked whether Hazare had been "unfair" by continuously attacking him and his government.

"I think, Anna Hazareji's movement has served its purpose. We are all working to ensure that we have in place before long an effective Lokpal," Singh added while talking to accompanying journalists on his way back home from Pretoria where he attended the India-Brazil-south Africa (IBSA) Summit.

He said the government expected Parliament to vote for an effective Lokpal Bill "which will be an assurance to the people that corruption cannot flourish as a way of life." Singh disagreed with a suggestion that corruption is an inevitable fallout of development as similar issues were finding resonance in public protests in other IBSA member countries -- Brazil and South Africa.

"I can't take that view of complacency. Corruption hurts development processes, corruption hurts the poor, corruption affects the quality of governance. Therefore, I can't say corruption is something which is inevitable in the society," he asserted.

PTI