Baba Ramdev’s followers observe Black Day; 3 fall ill

On Day 3 of the indefinite hunger strike undertaken by yoga guru Baba Ramdev and his supporters against corruption, two of his supporters fasting at Azad Maidan were put on saline as their health deteriorated. Pooja Domadia reports.

On Day 3 of the indefinite hunger strike undertaken by yoga guru Baba Ramdev and his supporters against corruption, two of his supporters fasting at Azad Maidan were put on saline as their health deteriorated.

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“We tried to send them to a hospital for treatment, but they refused. So, we got a doctor to the pandal at Azad Maidan. They are still continuing with the fast,” said Suresh Naik, Mumbai president of the Bharat Swabhiman Nyas (BSN), on Monday.

Twenty-five of Baba Ramdev’s supporters are on an indefinite hunger strike at Azad Maidan.

Monday was observed as ‘Black Day’ as a mark of protest against the eviction of Baba Ramdev and his supporters from the Ramlila maidan in Delhi on Sunday midnight.

His followers wore black armbands and waved black flags to protest against the government.

“Many of our volunteers have gone to different parts of the state to awaken them against the barbaric act of the government. They will stage protests at the local government offices of various districts and zillas,” added Naik.

“I don’t understand why 5,000 policemen were deployed to evacuate the non-violent crowd. Morchas and protests are part of the democracy and such action cannot be taken against anyone without any reason,” said Raj Purohit, Mumbai president, BJP.

Purohit alleged: “The black money lies with the Gandhi family, government and bureaucrats and that is the reason they are not doing anything against the black money. What has been asked is very simple. The prime minister can easily pass an ordinance declaring the amount invested illegally in foreign countries national property. But, they are not doing it as they will be under the scanner then.”

He also rubbished claims that Baba Ramdev and his supporters were evicted because the government got intelligence reports of security threat to Baba. “Such reasons are baseless. Digvijay Singh called Ramdev a thug and dhongi. What level of language are they using,” he added.