Kejriwal: Protest to be 10 times bigger if Lokpal not passed

New Delhi, Nov 29: With the Lokpal issue still searing between Team Anna and the government, prominent Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal stepped up the pressure and slammed the government version of the Lokpal Bill. He added that the decision to book the Ramlila Maidan was not a "pressure tactic" and only an attempt to “keep the options open".

Still undecided on what sort of protest to employ, Kejriwal commented to media persons in Ghaziabad that permission was sought to use the grounds on Dec 27. He said, "Anna has always said, if the Lokpal Bill is not passed in the winter session, we will protest on a big scale again. At this point of time, we have not decided if the protest will be a fast unto death, or some other method."

Kejriwal has also issued a veiled threat of sorts when he said that if the Lokpal Bill is not passed in the present winter session of Parliament, a fresh agitation will be launched that will be bigger than the one carried out in August. He said, "We first protested at Jantar Mantar. Then the protest at Ramlila Maidan was ten times bigger. The next protest will be ten times (larger than) the (previous) one."

With Team Anna already checking with the MCD for ground availability, they have also met with the Delhi Police for applying for a mandatory clearance. Kejriwal commented, "After police give permission, we will have to go back to MCD for an NOC (no objection certificate)."

Vivek Kishore, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) said on the application, "We have received an application today. We cannot comment right now on how many days they will be permitted to hold the campaign. We are going to assess and then decide it." The Additional DCP (Central), Aslam Khan also added, "The process and final decision-making may take about a week."

OneIndia News