Pune: Social crusader Anna Hazare on March 19 rejected the request by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis about withdrawing his indefinite fast at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi from March 23 to demand the appointments of Lokpal and Lokayuktas, solutions to problems faced by farmers and electoral reforms.
Hazare said he was willing to discuss the issues with a PMO representative provided the Union government came up with some concrete plan of action about how the issues raised by him will be addressed, Sanjay Pathade, secretary in Hazare’s office, told TOI.
State water resource minister Girish Mahajan held an hour-long closed door meeting with Hazare at Ralegan Siddhi on March 19 night and conveyed the request by Fadnavis as well as the PMO. The meeting was under wraps .
Pathade said Mahajan requested Anna not to undertake the fast as he has reached an advanced age and asked him if he was willing to sit across the table for a discussion if a PMO representative came to meet him.
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