After 22 months at the centre of the national debate on corruption,Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejrwal are on a collision course. Hazares apparent intransigence on the matter of a political party and Kejriwals determination to see it through,coupled with Hazares announcement on Sunday that the headquarters of his movement was shifting from Delhi to Ralegan Siddhi,suggest that a parting of ways is all but inevitable.
At the same time,both sides realise they cant do without the other. Image conscious that he is,Hazare is unlikely to relinquish completely his sway over his former team an association that catapulted him to national stage after decades of anti-corruption activism in Maharashtra. Should Team Anna 2 fail to invite the kind of support that Lokpal movement did,it will be difficult for him to return to the relative anonymity of Ralegan Siddhi. An extra-constitutional leadership position in Kejriwals party would be just the thing as Hazare had himself envisaged in the Jantar Mantar speech on August 3.
With even their core internet-SMS constituency failing to return absolute results,Kejriwal cannot be unaware of the need for Anna imagery to realise his political aspirations.
This is why despite Hazare stressing that he is not part of a political party,the IAC even conducted the referendum in the name of Anna Party. Kumar Vishwas defended it by claiming that with so many I am Anna caps on display all over the country,Anna was no longer just one person but a symbol.
Kejriwal and Company also take heart from the fact that while Hazare has a long history of falling out with colleagues,at least one of them Avinash Dharmadhikari has been sent an invite for the September 18 meeting at Ralegan Siddhi to chart a new panel and course. Even if their political party for now has to function without Hazare,Kejriwal may be hoping for a similar patch-up in due course.
abantika.ghosh@expressindia.com
