Team Anna wants govt to appoint negotiator, withdraw its bill

Swami Agnivesh, one of the members of Team Anna's core committee, said they were open for talks but the government should create an atmosphere for it.

"If the government wants to talk to us it should appoint a negotiator," he said.

"We are open for talks. In order to open a door for dialogue, the government has to create an atmosphere. They have to create an atmosphere of trust by withdrawing the government bill from Parliament and introduce Jan Lokpal Bill. We will not budge from our stand. This is the least they should do to earn our trust," Agnivesh said.

To questions on "strong words" being used by both government and members of Team Anna, Agnivesh said it would be good if both sides desist from using "such phrases" which could lead to any kind of confrontation.

On the meeting between senior Maharashtra government official and Hazare, he said the official has known the Gandhian for a long time and he met him in his personal capacity.