A veteran social activist in India has launched an indefinite hunger strike to seek tough, overarching laws to tackle corruption as a rash of scandals undermined the reputation of the country's government. On Tuesday, activist Anna Hazare began his "fast-unto-death" at New Delhi's Jantar Mantar landmark.
His campaign, supported by numerous social reformists, has come in the wake of a series of high-profile alleged scandals that have rocked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's administration and investor confidence in Asia's third largest economy.
Hazare is demanding that a long-pending citizen ombudsman legislation, called the Lokpal bill, be widened in its scope.
Hazare and his supporters reject the bill in its present form because it does not empower the proposed bodies to prosecute corruption suspects.
Anti-graft crusaders have come up with their own draft of the legislation that seeks to create citizen ombudsman completely free from political influence and with wide-ranging jurisdiction.
"This fast-unto-death is a reflection of the people's anger at growing, all-round corruption ... at a time when the scourge is eating into the vitals of our society," said political commentator K.G. Suresh. (read more)
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