JOIN USStudents skip classes to join the crusade
Divya, a student of BNMIT College said: “ We got permission from the director of our college to take part in the event.” She along with 60 students from the college gathered at Freedom Park. While they did not take part in the fast, they were in full solidarity with the movement.
Two BIT students, Vishal and Vishwas proudly admitted that they in fact had bunked their practical hour in college to attend the event and also said that they would stay for the march scheduled for the evening.
“Our chairman and principal are here so we came with them after class.” said Madhuri a student of BMS college. “We are having a fest in a few days but we left all the preparation to come here and show our support.”
Sixty students came from PESIT college while some of them took permission from their teachers like Tejasvi who said: “This is a noble cause so our teacher encouraged us to come here. We didn’t have to bunk college because we are doing nothing wrong.”
However, Vivek and his friends also from PESIT decided to miss classes and go to the Freedom Park. Even though these students were not taking part in the fast, they were excited about the march. Around 20,000 people have signed the petition for the Jan Lokpal Bill, and many of them are students.
Surabhi H R from the Christ University addressed the audience about her dream of seeing a corruption-free India and said the only way to make a difference was to get into the political system and work with honesty.
Presence of stars sends mixed signals
Kannada cine actor Upendra and Priya Hassan were among the film stars who turned up at the Freedom Park here on Friday to show their support for the ongoing campaign of Anna Hazare.
One volunteer at the event said Upendra was approached to be a part of the campaign even before the movement against corruption had begun as the actor’s very first movie sent an anti-corruption message. However, Upendra was said to be unwilling initially to come out in the open and be a part of the struggle.
Questions were raised about the star’s presence and some wondered if he joined the campaign after it gained momentum.
But Upendra said none approached him earlier. “Why will I say no to such a cause? I am not supporting any organisation, I am supporting the cause of anti corruption. I represent the common man and speak for the common man.”
However the voluteers were not comfortable with the presence of many public figures, who they feel used the occasion to get into the limelight. Many of the protesters were openly skeptical about the commitment of the star participants.
IISc students, faculty join the fast
Expressing their solidarity with social activist Anna Hazare, nearly 800 students and faculty in the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) held a candle light vigil here on Friday evening.
The students, faculty members and non-teaching staff participated in the protest outside the Institute’s Faculty Hall. Nearly 500 students will go on a day-long voluntary hunger strike on Saturday. “We have taken down the names of people who want to stage hunger strike and informed the mess to cook the food accordingly so that there is no wastage,” said Rishikesh Pandey, the student council chairman.
Pandey believed that if a 72-year-old person could take this initiative and fast for four days, it was their moral responsibility to show their support to Hazare’s crusade.
On Friday morning, a group of about 60 students had cycled from the IISc campus to the Freedom Park where the protest has been going on demanding passage of the Jan Lokpall Bill.
Though unaware of the difference between Jan Lokpal Bill and Lokpal Bill, Srikant Reddy, a master’s student, said he took part in the protest as he was against corruption. “The protest details were posted on notice boards of the mess and the broadcast mail so that everyone came to know of it,” he said.
M G Narayana, secretary, Tata Memorial Club, IISc, said that the students had 100 per cent support from the faculty on the issue. “The movement should have been done much earlier; our country would have prospered and become much developed,” he said.