After auction of SUV, Anna Hazare gets new vehicle

Social activist Anna Hazare now has a new vehicle, a Toyota Innova, a month after his old SUV was auctioned after eight years of use. Hazare today drove the vehicle through Ralegan Siddhi.

People gathered to have a look at their village's most famous resident driving his new vehicle. "The Innova came to Ralegan Siddhi yesterday. The seating arrangement suits Anna, who is suffering from back pain," Hazare's aide Datta Awari told PTI over phone from the village in Ahmednagar district.

The eight-year-old Mahindra Scorpio used by Hazare during various agitations, including Jan Lokpal movement, was sold on May 17 for Rs 9 lakh in an auction at Ralegan Siddhi. Pravin alias Atul Lokhande from Ahmednagar, who is closely associated with Hazare, purchased the Scorpio for Rs 9,11,000.

The SUV was owned by Hazare's Swami Vivekanand Krutudnata Nidhi, a trust formed to govern the funds received by him by way of awards. "That vehicle took Anna from place to place when he launched the Jan Lokpal movement," Awari said. "He used it during his successful fight against the corrupt (Maharashtra) ministers in 2007 and 2009," he said.