Hundreds of people, both young and old, turned up at the Jantar Mantar today, waving tricolours, wearing Gandhi caps and chanting slogans as Anna Hazare returned to the landmark for a day-long fast to press his demand for a strong Lokpal.
On a pleasant Sunday winter morning, people started trickling in very early — some came as early as 6.30 a.m.— to occupy the front seats near the stage where Anna was to sit on the fast.
Half an hour before Anna reached Jantar Mantar after paying his respects at the Rajghat, a crowd of around 1,000 people had already gathered at the venue of the fast, and the numbers only kept growing by the minute, so did the people’s enthusiasm.
As he stepped on to the stage, Anna was greeted by loud cheers and claps from people who shouted slogans in his support.
While the atmosphere and slogans largely resembled those at the earlier Anna gatherings, two popular songs that caught the imagination of youngsters in recent times were added to the list.
While a couple of people carried placards that read: “Sadda Haq, Aithe Rakh” in a message to the Government, another read: “Why this Dhokha dhari?” — a take on the popular Kolaveri song.
The crowd swelled with people of all kinds — young, old, men, women and even children turning up, many wearing the trademark Anna caps with a caption — ‘I am Anna’.
Despite a strict security cordon at the venue and a large media presence obstructing their view, the people did not seem to complain as they sang songs and chanted slogans in support of Team Anna’s demand for a strong Lokpal.