Meet Anna, see his village: Visitors flock to Ralegan Siddhi

The storm of the Jan Lokpal movement might have settled but there seems no end to the flow of visitors to anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare’s hometown Ralegan Siddhi. The village still sees 2,500-3,000 visitors a day, seeking to meet Hazare and see for themselves the village that turned a military driver into a crusader.

Says Datta Avari, who looks after the office of the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Andholan in Ralegan Siddhi, “Many anti-corruption activists who participated in the Jan Lokpal movement in Delhi or at their respective places are now visiting the village. Many of them have expressed the desire to join our movement and work for it in their respective states.”

Many who attended Hazare’s protests at Ramlila Maidan and Jantar Mantar in New Delhi but couldn’t personally meet him are visiting the village, hoping to spend time with the 74-year-old activist. Hazare, meanwhile, is resting as advised by doctors and spends most of his time at the Padmavati Temple in the village. He comes out thrice a day and addresses visitors — at 10 am, 1 pm and 4 pm.

The development carried out in the village under Hazare’s leadership is another incentive for the visitors. The villagers had no option other than to go out in search of livelihood in the 1970s as the village was severely drought affected. Hazare had organised villagers and successfully implemented several watershed projects in and around the village, which has brought prosperity to the region that now has most farmland under irrigation.

“People are coming from far-off places like Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. Besides meeting Anna, they are keen on seeing projects like Hind Swaraj Trust (which works for village development and watershed), Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Andolan and the Sant Yadavbaba Hostel (which only admits students with poor academic records),” says sarpanch Jaysinghrao Mapari.

Villagers plan gramsabha

The ‘Z’ security provided to Hazare by the Ahmednagar police is in place despite his request to the Home Ministry to withdraw it. Hazare has reportedly written a letter to Home Minister R R o, requesting him to withdraw the security. Villagers said they would convene a gramsabha if Hazare took a strong stance and request him to keep the security. “We expect R R Patil would personally come and persuade Anna, if not we will convene a gramsabha and request him,” Mapari said.