Anna thanks Rahul for passage of Lokpal Bill

The entire village of Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district, where social activist Anna Hazare has been staging an indefinite fast to get the Lokpal Bill passed in Parliament for the past 10 days, burst into joy and song following the news of the passing of the bill in the Rajya Sabha, on Tuesday.

Hazare, who is expected to break his fast on Wednesday, if the bill sails smoothly through the Lok Sabha, has already become extremely weak. Suresh Pathare, a close aide of the Gandhian, said the doctors monitoring the physical parameters say that while the activist’s weight has gone down by 4.60 kg, “... the creatinine on Tuesday was abnormally high and there were chances that it may affect the kidney functions as well as may also result in high fever.”

Doctors, in order to prevent any possible physical complications arising out of the fasting by the 76-year-old leader, have converted an inside room in Yadavbaba Temple where the podium has been erected, into a make-shift intensive care unit.

However, even though extremely weak, a beaming Hazare told media that he has thanked Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi for keeping his “commitment” to see the passage of Lokpal Bill in Parliament. Hazare said that on Sunday he sent a letter to Rahul explaining the need for a strong Lokpal.

In his letter he also asked the Congress leader to include recommendations made by the select committee in the bill. Meanwhile, former IPS officer Kiran Bedi who was planning to leave for Delhi early in the morning postponed her departure and stayed behind in the hamlet, joining the celebrations in the evening.

Later, she informed the press that Hazare had sent letters of gratitude to Rahul Gandhi (Congress) and Arun Jaitley (BJP) for realising the gravity of the issue.