UPA is discrediting Hazare, Ramdev: Uma Bharti

Uma Bharti, who recently made a comeback to Bharatiya Janata Party, on Tuesday said the United Progressive Alliance government was deliberately 'discrediting' Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev for channelising growing discontent among common people against the UPA government.

"What Baba Ramdev and Anna Hazare are doing is channelising peoples' discontent. But the UPA government is so insensitive that it used a massive force to stop Baba's peaceful agitation midnight and is now threatening to use same tactics against social activist Anna Hazare," said Uma Bharti after meeting Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue M G Vaidya in Nagpur.

"The government should know that suppressed public anger can explode any time," she said, adding that the UPA leaders were deliberately discrediting Ramdev and Hazare.

"In a calculated method, the two mass leaders are being made look like khalnayaks (villains) or even jokers.

Digvijay Singh's remark against Baba is also a clear admission that the government unleashed terror against Ramdev to end his successful and peaceful agitation which was attracting huge public support," she said.

Referring to a reported statement made by Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh, she said, "By declaring that Anna will be meted out the same treatment as Baba faced when he was bundled out of Ramlila Maidan, and his followers beaten up, Singh has only made it clear that the UPA government is least interested in dealing with rampant corruption in the government".

The former president of Bharatiya Janshakti Party said that the party would be formally merged with BJP in Delhi on Wednesday.

"I held no post in that party (Bhartiya Janshakti Party). But I will be present there for the function while the merger formality will be done by that party president Sanghapriya Gautam and BJP national president Nitin Gadkari," said Bharti.

Asked about her plans for Uttar Pradesh of which she was made in-charge by BJP leadership, Bharti said the state elections next year will be fought on the issue of total failure on part of Mayavati government on law and order front.

"Before Mayavati's Bahujan Samaj Party, BJP was the only party to win elections on its own in that state in 1991. So the BJP has good support base and we are confident of doing well in UP," she said.