NEW DELHI: After AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh, former Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar too has voiced his reservations over the Anna Hazare-led civil society movement for the Lokpal bill . He said the recent campaign held the danger of undermining democracy and its institutions.
"Civil society's recent movement has not understood the malaise. Their recent movement carries the danger of undermining our democratic institutions and our democracy," Aiyar told reporters on the sidelines of a function here on Sunday.
Earlier, Congress leader Digvijay Singh had questioned the way committee for drafting the bill was set up, wondering if politicians were uncivilised and couldn't be members of civil society. He had also said that it could not be expected that the draft finalised by the civil society members would be accepted as nobody could take away the rights of the elected representatives.
Aiyar, whose criticism of the movement comes days after government agreed to the agitators' demand to set up a joint panel to draft the bill, said while civil society should agitate on issues, their resolution can only take place within institutions of democracy.
"If a politician is not allowed to enter Jantar Mantar and anybody who says he has got the support of the people is described as a filthy dirty fellow and these noble people will never fight an election... then you are endangering democracy... They don't understand what they are doing is undermining democracy," the Rajya Sabha MP said. Aiyar said inclusive growth was a prerequisite to preserve democracy and ensure development.
"Widening gap will lead to Naxal problem and mindless anti-incumbency and like the recent atmosphere by the middle class in which the political class is being disrespected." Though Hazare's campaign had the Opposition's backing, the BJP too had said that it should have been taken on board the exercise of drafting the bill. Party leaders L K Advani and Nitin Gadkari were critical of the "all politicians are bad" approach.
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