Social activist Anna Hazare on Thursday hinted of conditional support to the newly formed Aam Aadmi Party if its founder Arvind Kejriwal fielded right candidates in the elections.
Addressing a gathering of India Against Corruption volunteers in Bhubaneswar, Hazare said he recently
asked Kejriwal to select good people. "I will cross-check (the background of) those selected. If I find them good, I will support the candidates and campaign for them," Hazare said, adding that good people should go to Parliament.
He said the paths opted by Kejriwal and him were different but the goal was the same.
The 75-year-old anti-corruption crusader described the movement launched by him as another freedom struggle and urged the youth to be prepared for sacrifice for the country. "This is a struggle for the next 15 to 20 years. One has to be prepared to go to jail, suffer baton and even bullets," Hazare said.
Hazare said India could reduce corruption to 65% just by bringing the Lokpal. "Besides, if right to reject and gram sabha are effectively implemented, it will reduce to 95%," he said.
Hazare, who is on a three-day visit of Odisha, is scheduled to attend a farmers' meet in Jagatsinghpur district, about 100 km east of Bhubaneswar, and interact with students in an engineering college in Bhubaneswar.