Sena demands Prez's rule over Anna Hazare's agitation

After its flip flop over supporting social activist Anna Hazare's agitation to press for the Jan Lok Pal Bill, Shiv Sena has made a strong case for imposing President’s rule in the country.

According to Shiv Sena, this was important because the Congress-led government at the Centre has miserably failed to effectively handle Hazare's agitation and the corruption cases against its ministers. The party said the government has lost moral authority to continue and President’s Rule should be imposed.

A Shiv Sena leader told Business Standard: “The party’s mouthpiece Saamna has come out with an editorial on Tuesday in this regard. Party supremo Bal Thackeray, who is the Saamna editor, has reminded that senior BJP leader LK Advani has already demanded Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's resignation and a fresh mandate. However, Thackeray feels it is not enough, instead what is needed is the imposition of President's rule.” The Sena leader said the party was of the view that India needs a clean government and not a tainted one.

Shiv Sena chief has squarely blamed the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre for converting the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into a pawn.  Therefore, the party has supported the Hazare team's argument that the CBI should be brought under the purview of the Jan Lok Pal.

Shiv Sena's view comes at a time when the UPA government has been under attack from various quarters for mishandling the issue of corruption and the agitation launched by Hazare.

Shiv Sena had supported Hazare's fast in April but had later distanced itself questioning the funding of Hazare's agitation. This led to a verbal duel between Sena leaders and members of Hazare’s group who clarified that his agitation had not received any corporate funding. 

When Hazare launched his fast on August 16, a section of the party had criticised the social activist and argued there had been a huge difference between running a non-government organisation and a government. However, after looking at massive mobilisation in support of Hazare's fast, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray was forced to hold a special press conference declaring their support for Hazare.