New Delhi: Yoga guru Ramdev, who along with
his supporters faced police crackdown during their agitation
at Ramlila Maidan on Monday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh asking him to exercise "self restraint" and ensure that
similar action was not taken against Anna Hazare and his team.
As confrontation between the Hazare and government
escalated after police denied permission to the gandhian for
holding a fast from tomorrow to press for a strong Lokpal
Bill, Ramdev, in his letter to the Prime Minister, said such
protests should not be "crushed" through unconstitutional and
undemocratic means.
"We would expect that you will exercise self-restraint
and not allow a repeat of what happened against us on the
midnight of June 4 at the Ramlila maidan," the yoga guru
said.
Delhi Police's refusal of permission coincided with Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh's strong remarks in his Independence
Day speech that hunger strikes and fasts-unto-death do not
help address the problem of corruption and Parliament is the
only body to form legislations to curb the menace.
Ramdev in his letter to the PM reiterated his demand for
bringing back the black money stashed abroad under UN
convention against corruption and declaring it as national
asset.
PTI
First Published: Monday, August 15, 2011, 20:37