PM calls meeting of top ministers on Hazare logjam

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today called a meeting of his senior ministers to discuss the latest situation regarding the 10-day-old fast by civil society leader Anna Hazare, sources said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday called a meeting of his senior ministers to discuss the latest situation regarding the 10-day-old fast by civil society leader Anna Hazare, sources here said.

The meeting, to be held at 5 pm, will be attended by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee - who is also the chief negotiator with Team Anna, defence minister A K Antony, home minister P Chidambaram and law minister Salman Khurshid, who is another negotiator, the sources added.

The meeting comes after Science and Technology minister Vilasrao Deskhmukh held a meeting with Hazare and delivered to him a letter on behalf of all parties and parliament appealing to him to end the fast.

In the morning, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other party leaders made an appeal in the Lok Sabha to Hazare to end his fast.

According to sources, Hazare has told Deshmukh that he wanted a written assurance from the government about the passage of a stronger Lokpal bill.