PM's letter enough, no need for others to write to Anna Hazare: Congress

NEW DELHI: Congress dubbed general secretary Digvijaya Singh's missives to Anna Hazare as irrelevant, saying there was no need for any leader to communicate with the anti-graft campaigner after the PM's letter.
In his fresh offensive, Singh followed up his critical letter to the Gandhian on Tuesday with another one as "proof" of Hazare's links to RSS. In his fresh letter, Singh annexed a letter of support written by RSS biggie Suresh Joshi to Hazare in April to tell him that either he was not speaking the truth on his RSS links or was kept in the dark by his aides.
The letter came even as the PM earlier wrote to Hazare assuring him of UPA's commitment to fight corruption and usher in electoral and land reforms.
AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi told reporters, "The PM has written to Hazare. I don't think there is need for any other letter now. As far as RSS links are concerned, the top RSS leader has said they extended support to Anna's agitation."
The curt dismissal of Singh's bid to brand Hazare as RSS proxy betrays concern that any escalation with the Gandhian was not in the party's interest. That PM has sought to again persuade the septuagenarian campaigner in contrast to strong language used by AICC managers is a significant peep into how the party hopes to resolve the fresh stalemate.
The stress on RSS links, as indicated by Singh in his successive letters to Hazare, could provoke the latter to keep hunting for issues to target Congress even after Lokpal bill is passed. Having struck a chord with the common man, such protests could put the Centre in perennial firefighting mode, not a pleasant task and politically risky.
While the patience in Congress is wearing thin following Team Anna's "defeat Congress" call in Hisar by-elections in Haryana, party strategists think that leaders should exercise restraint in dealing with the experienced activist.
Congress had to bow down to persuade Hazare to end his Ramlila Maidan fast after initial aggression which included questioning his integrity and accusing him of links to communal forces.