Author: PNS
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: June 1, 2011
URL: http://www.dailypioneer.com/342656/Govt-scurries-to-placate-Ramdev-BJP-backs-baba.html
Rattled by Baba Ramdev proposed indefinite
fast over black money and corruption, the Government on Tuesday made an all-out
effort to placate the yoga guru.
While Baba Ramdev remained determined to proceed
on the fast, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself urged him to give up his
agitation while Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Central Board of Direct
Taxes (CBDT) officials were in direct touch with the Guru, who was also extended
support by the BJP in his crusade against corruption.
BJP president Nitin Gadkari wrote to the Prime
Minister backing Baba Ramdev and asking him to take the initiative to address
the issues raised by the yoga guru.
Having burnt his fingers in not assessing
the impact of Anna Hazare's fast in the past, the Government is not ready
to take any chances.
The Prime Minister on Tuesday wrote to Ramdev
asking him not to go ahead with his hunger strike, promising to find with
him a "pragmatic" solution to tackle the scourge of corruption.
"This is not a personal issue. We all
agree with Ramdev that corruption is a big problem and that we are committed
to tackle it with all the resources at our disposal," Singh told the
media on the sidelines of a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
In Madhya Pradesh, where he is conducting
a yoga camp, Ramdev made it clear that he was not calling off his agitation
plan till all the demands were met.
"My hunger strike will go ahead. There
is no question of calling off the protest plan till my demands are met and
till talks reach a satisfactory conclusion," he said.
In his letter, the Prime Minister welcomed
Ramdev's constructive suggestions to improve governance. He also assured the
yoga guru that his Government was eager to work with him and members of civil
society towards building a just and prosperous India.
Singh said Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee
and his officers would continue to have discussions with Ramdev on the issues
that he has raised and hoped he would reverse his decision to go on a hunger
strike unto death.
"We will work with Ramdev earnestly in
finding a practical and pragmatic solution to the problem. The question is
what possible way is and what is feasible. There are laws," he said.
"Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and
his officials are talking to Baba Ramdev. The officials have met him and discussions
are taking place," disclosed Home Minister P Chidambaram while talking
to mediapersons.
At the same time, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal
hoped that the Government would be able to find a solution. "It is just
May 31 today. Wait and see," he said and added that the Government would
respond after the discussions are over.
Meanwhile, Gadkari wrote to the Prime Minister
seeking his personal intervention to accept Ramdev's demands for urgent steps
to recover black money, punish the tainted and put in place a strict anti-graft
law.
"Now that the rock star of yoga has decided
to take the fight against corruption to the next level by resorting to the
extreme step of fast-unto-death from June 4 and that 10 crore people of this
country will be joining him, the BJP's can't remain a silent spectator,"
Gadkari wrote in the letter to the PM.
He suggested the Government to invite Baba
Ramdev for a meaningful dialogue before it was too late and assured him that
an effective foolproof mechanism -- as suggested by him -- will be put in
place immediately.
Gadkari pointed out that mere creation of
a wing under the CBDT to track and prosecute economic affairs was not going
to solve the monumental problem. "Nor would issuing appeals to the yoga
guru to give up his plan is going to defuse the threatening crisis,"
the BJP chief added.
Gadkari reminded the Prime Minister that in
the run-up to the 2009 general election the issue of black money had occupied
a significant portion of the political discourse and both the mainstream allies
had promised to take action on the same, if voted to power. "I would
like to draw your attention to your promise of bringing back black money in
100 days after assuming power," Gadkari told the PM.
The BJP leader said his party had every reason
to believe Baba Ramdev's assertion that black money lying in several international
bank were to the tune of Rs 400 lakh crore and demanded that Government should
initiate immediate measures to track this national property and get its back
so that it could be used for development projects to ameliorate the deprived
sections of the society.
