Rough English translation of Anna Hazare's letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
Dear Dr Manmohan Singh Ji,
I am grateful to you and the Parliament for having shown respect to our movement. We have the highest regard for our Parliament. Our Parliament is the sacred temple of our democracy.
I am not sitting on this fast out of any selfish motive. As you people work for the betterment of the country, I too am concerned about the people of the country. I do not have any kind of power. I am only a common man who wants to do something for the society and the poor.
Our movement is not against any individual or party. We are against corruption. The corrupt system needs to be changed. If anything that I or my associates said during this movement has offended you or anyone else, I apologise for that. To hurt anyone is not our intention.
Corruption has made life difficult for the common man. Our country is being discredited the world over. I hope that this will come to an end in the near future. We all have to work together for this. Laws and regulations are for the people and not above the people. In order to immediately curb corruption, if we have to make new laws and amend existing ones, we shouldn't hesitate.
I cannot tolerate when a common man struggles because of corruption. To prevent the common man from being a victim of corruption, the Jan Lokpal Bill has three provisions.
- This law should ensure that every state has a Lokayukta
- All government departments should have Citizens Charters to address the people's problems and any violation should be penalised.
- Every level of central and state government employees should come under the purview of Lokpal.
Can these three points be presented in Parliament? I not only expect but believe that all our parliamentarians, to begin with, will agree to these three points, to give deliverance to the people from the daily ignominy of corruption.
My inner conscience tells me that if there is a consensus on these proposals, then I will break my fast. The other issues in the Jan Lokpal Bill like selection process and others are also very important to contain corruption. I will continue to sit in Ramlila Maidan along with my supporters till Parliament takes decision on the other issues because this is the voice of people.
I invite you and all parliamentarians to take part in this countrywide movement against corruption. This is our country and we all have to together endeavour to make it better.
Regards,
K B alias Anna Hazare
Original letter in Hindi
