New Delhi: Swami Agnivesh, who was earlier
associated with activist Anna Hazare, on Saturday demanded an
apology from Team Anna members for trying to project the
Gandhian as a "cult figure" and asked them to refrain from
slogans like 'Anna is India and India is Anna'.
"There should not be any attempt to create a cult figure
and the people associated with Anna's movement must apologise
for this. Cult leads to a kind of dictatorship. It is elitist
in origin and the slogan 'Anna is India and India is Anna'
should not be used," Agnivesh said here.
Participating in an open discussion on the Lokpal Bill
organised by All India Confederation of SC/ST organisations,
Agnivesh said there is no place for individual worship in the
country.
"There is no place for individual worship in this
country. We will never accept it whenever a person is
represented as god or the country," he said.
Without naming Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal, Agnivesh
sought an apology from him for his statement that Hazare is
above Parliament.
"Whoever said that his leader is above the Parliament,
should apologise. Parliament is a temple of democracy which
represents the country. Even if there are few corrupt people
there, its dignity should not be tampered with," he said.
While he condemned the attack on senior lawyer Prashant
Bhushan for speaking in favour of plebiscite in Kashmir,
Agnivesh rubbished the option and said the government should
take steps to include Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) in
India.
"I am not in favour of the statements given by him.
Kashmir can never be separated from the country. Kashmir means
Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, and after Parliament's resolution
even PoK is part of our country and we must take steps to
include it in our country," he said.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, October 15, 2011, 22:20