I have no faith in Manmohan Singh: Anna Hazare

“I had strong belief in PM Manmohan Singh, but now, I don’t have any faith in him,” said anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare, 74, on Friday. He had earlier sought to distance himself from his team over remarks against Singh.

Calling Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) clarification on charges of corruption in coal blocks allocation scam misleading and aimed at hiding critical facts, Team Anna slammed the government.

It rejected investigation into the case by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and reiterated its demand for an independent and unbiased probe.

Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal said, “We want the PMO to answer why there was no auction before the allocation of coal blocks to firms. A CBI probe is just an eyewash as the agency reports to the PM. After six-seven months of investigation, it will give him a clean chit,” he said.

He cited examples of Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Yadav, Mayawati against whom cases of disproportionate assets are still going on without any credible action. “However, action against Jagan Mohan Reddy, UPA’s foe, happened fast. This shows that CBI is being used to serve the Centre’s political agenda,” he added.