Anna Hazare

By Prerna Suri in Asia on December 23rd, 2011
Photo: AP
It's Anna Hazare versus the Indian government yet again. 

The 74-year-old Gandhian activist is going on his third fast this year, demanding the government pass his version of a strong anti-corruption law. This, by the current session of parliament, which officially ends today. 

But the government is under pressure and that session has now been extended for three days from December 27-29.

Still, many say that it is not enough time to deliberate a historic legislation that could change the contours of corruption in this country. 

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Photo: AFP

I've been covering Hazare's fast since April this year. And while I've seen scores of ordinary Indians coming out on the streets in his support, the numbers increasingly swelling in his favour and rattling the government - the debate has also shifted against him.
By Prerna Suri in Asia on August 28th, 2011
Photo by EPA

"We the people of India ...." is how India's preamble reads. It's giving force and voice to a nation and not just a polity. But in recent decades this line by India's founding fathers has somehow lost its relevance. Instead of respecting one's lawmakers, Indians have had to put up with their political bickering, their personal quests for power and, yes, rampant corruption amongst them.

But the last 24 hours have changed this perception.

On August 28, 2011, Anna Hazare put an end to his hunger strike. Parliament accepted his demand for a strong new anti-corruption watchdog. This, after eight hours of some of the most scintillating speeches we've heard from MPs in a long time. And it took a 74-year-old man who refused to eat to come to this.

Victory?

By Prerna Suri in Asia on August 22nd, 2011

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As far as the eye can see, the streets are lined with rows of tricolored flags. They’re fluttering in whatever monsoon winds are left. A group of women students from New Delhi walk with construction workers from Bihar. Their voices rise in curious unison: "Long live the revolution".

The "India" of the elite, and the "Bharat" of the masses, seamlessly coming together in one eclectic moment.

It’s almost a carnivalesque atmosphere at Delhi's Ramlila grounds. One could be forgiven for thinking this is another one of India’s colourful festivals. But this time, the young, the old, men, women and even children are speaking in one voice, all for one 74-year-old man. And all against corruption. A bit much you'd think?

The Anna phenomenon

By Prerna Suri in Asia on April 8th, 2011
Photo by Al Jazeera/Prerna Suri

It is being called India's version of Tahrir Square after Egypt's protests that toppled the president. Jantar Mantar, the country's historic stretch, is crowded with Indians. They're singing, chanting, dancing, painting, holding up placards in 45 degrees heat - all for one cause: corruption.

"Politicians are getting richer and we're paying the price for it. We don't have jobs and while we're suffering they're living it up,"  says 22-year-old Swati, a university graduate. She's supposed to be the face of 'shining India', where opportunities are available in plenty, but her presence in these protests is defying that image.

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