Banners in Pune urge Anna Hazare to lead 'vote theft' protest; time for youth to act, he says
Mumbai, Aug 17 (PTI): Veteran social activist Anna Hazare on Sunday expressed dismay over banners in Pune that urged him to "wake up" and lead an agitation against alleged "vote theft".
Speaking to reporters, Hazare said he had done what he could and it was time for the youth to carry forward his work.
The banners, bearing the name of local activist Sameer Uttarkar, have been put up in the Pashan area of the city.
"Anna, at least wake up now. Even Kumbhakarna woke up from deep slumber for Ravana and Lanka, so why don't you do the same for the country?" the banners read.
They also carried a message that the nation was eager to witness Hazare's "magic" again at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, urging him to speak out and lead an agitation against alleged electoral malpractices.
Reacting to the display, Hazare said, "I introduced 10 laws, but even after 90 years, if people expect me to keep doing everything while they remain asleep, that expectation is wrong. What I have done should be carried forward by the youth."
Hazare, who spearheaded anti-corruption agitations that led to the Right to Information Act, Jan Lokpal Bill and reforms in his native Ralegan Siddhi, reminded the youth that holding the tricolour only on Independence Day was not enough.
"As citizens, don't we have duties? Nothing will be achieved merely by pointing fingers," he said.
The veteran activist expressed regret that "even after so many years of struggle, society has not woken up". He urged youngsters to embrace Gandhian ideals and fight social and economic issues.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has alleged irregularities in electoral rolls, bogus voting and questions over EVMs while attacking the Election Commission and the BJP government.
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Rickelton's ton in vain as SRH beat MI by 6 wickets
Mumbai (PTI): Ryan Rickelton's whirlwind unbeaten ton was overshadowed by Heinrich Klaasen's unbeaten 65 as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets in an IPL match here on Wednesday.
Chasing an imposing 244-run target, Travis Head (76 off 30) and Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24) shared 129 runs for the opening wicket to set the platform for SRH.
Klaasen (65 not out off 30 balls) then displayed his all-round hitting abilities to guide SRH home with the help of Nitish Kumar Reddy (21) and Salil Arora (30 not out off 10) in 18.4 overs.
Earlier, Rickelton's knock powered MI to 243 for five.
MI rode on a 93-run stand between Rickelton (123 not out off 55 balls) and Will Jacks (46 off 22) in 7.1 overs for the opening stand to power the side.
MI skipper Hardik Pandya scored a valuable 31 off 15 balls before being dismissed.
Praful Hinge (2/54), Eshan Malinga (1/29), Sakib Hasan (1/39) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/31) were the wicket-takers for SRH.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indian: 243 for 5 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 123 not out; Praful Hinge 2/54).
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 249 for 4 in 18.4 overs (Travis Head 76, Heinrich Klaasen 65 not out; AM Ghazanfar 2/51).
