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I barely believed it when I first read that in Hazare's village, Dalits were flogged for eating meat. But this detailed research article by Mukuk Sharma published in April 2011, which I chanced upon only now, provides the detailed background to Anna's theory of authority and punishment .
The claims in the article are almost certainly the truth, being in character with Hazare's methods and style displayed through these last few months. Also, Team Hazare has not sued Mukul Sharma for libel.
In other words, it is almost certain that Anna Hazare has COMMITTED VIOLENT, CRIMINAL ASSAULT.
This article also shows that Anna has a deeply statist and collectivist ideology. Maximilien Robespierre would have been proud of him.
I'm afraid for India. We first had Ramdev who demanded the hanging of the corrupt, and now we have a REAL CRIMINAL being glorified as a "Gandhian". And Kiran Bedi claiming that "Anna is India"!!!
I would urge the Maharashtra government to investigate these charges and BRING ANNA HAZARE TO CRIMINAL TRIAL.
A Belief System
The basis for the authority of Anna comes from a belief system, where the people following him consider it their natural duty to obey, and the exercising person thinks it a natural right to rule. The people justify their belief as rational and absolute, and follow the authority on a stable, durable basis. Ganpat Pidi Aaauti, a former village sarpanch for many years, narrates: ‘Whatever Anna says, we do. The whole village follows his words. Anna’s orders work like the army.’ For another villager, Lakshman Pathare, ‘Annajee is like God. Whatever work he will assign, I will fulfill. Annajee has become my nature, my habit. He is my heart.’
There is an absolute recognition of an authority locally, in several internalised ways. This authority stands on a common ground of moral values, which constitute its ideology. They become the structures of governance, and work as normative regulations, based on a wide consensus.
To forge a common will, an all-pervasive concept of unity becomes a crucial factor for an environmental organisation, which can be created through logic and/or coercion. According to Anna, rural development must become a powerful instrument of national regeneration and for this the village people have to work together with the firm conviction that ‘Our Village Is One Family’. Unity becomes the representative of all interests, substituting all other structures of political institutions. Elections are not welcomed.
History and culture become reference points in the search for a common good. An environmental movement can use the given and accepted cultural symbols of a glorified mythic past to fulfill its needs of the present. They are part of the dominant value system, and can very well fit with the contemporary body politic. Anna declares:
“In olden days, our country had much wealth. We had a great civilisation. Our people were strong. Our villages were the place of mutual love, affinity and closeness. There was a lot of community work. Our mythology gives us a reference of 33 crore Gods…. Now we have lost our national culture, pride and spirit.”
Force and Punishment
In the process of social transformation, Anna believes, advise, persuasion or counselling do not always work and occasionally force has to be applied. The fear of physical force works. However, it cannot be applied permanently and has to be replaced by a more durable moral force.
In the process of social transformation, Anna believes, advise, persuasion or counselling do not always work and occasionally force has to be applied. The fear of physical force works. However, it cannot be applied permanently and has to be replaced by a more durable moral force.
Continuous use of force is justified on the ground that it serves a societal goal and a collective will. Its need is also internalised by many people, not only because it is seen as not targeting them, but also because they start believing in its worth. Force becomes an integral part of an environmentally sound and socially harmonious society.
When Anna Hazare started his work in Ralegan, alcoholism was a serious problem among the villagers. There were a number of liquor brewing units in the village. Anna decided to take up the issue, along with the watershed management programme. In a meeting called by him in the village temple, it was resolved to close down the liquor dens and ban the drinking of alcohol in the village. Many brewing units closed down voluntarily after this resolve. It reduced alcoholism, but some villagers continued to drink. Then it was decided that anybody taking liquor would be physically punished. Anna stated that there is a pole in front of the village temple. Many people found to be taking liquor had to be tied up with it and flogged.
It is not only Anna Hazare who proposes flogging and fear as essential parts of a green village; it has its wide audience. A moral authority using force also makes room for a social ethos, where it is put on a high pedestal. It is remarked: ‘Social consciousness against drinking has been raised to such an extent that a drunken person can be brought to the centre of the village and thrashed and no one will object.’ Flogging and fear become a part of everyday life and belief. Not only the authority employing it has the sanction to use it; others legitimise its use.
Pathare Bala Sahab Ganpat’s accounts:
“In previous days, there were liquor brewing units in the village. They all are closed now. Annajee gives punishment to those that take liquor. The person is tied to the pole and flogged overnight. The gram sabha has decided to form a group of 25 youth of the village, who can also give this punishment to the drunkards. Only last year, two-three villagers were caught in a drunken state. Annajee and the youth gave them the standard punishment and then handed them over to the police.”
The use of punishment got its expression within the ambit of law and elected representatives. A vice sarpanch of the village, Kailash Pote, says,
‘I was drinking. I was also tied to the pole and flogged two-three times. It is normal. Annajee will try to make you understand once or twice and thereafter, he will beat you badly.’
The need for fear and punishment in the social organisation becomes all-pervasive. Anna states:
“Mere existence of a family planning law does not help; its rigid implementation is warranted. This law should be made applicable to all persons living in India, irrespective of caste or creed and if necessary by force…. We have had the practical experience of need of force while implementing family planning measures in Ralegan Siddhi and hence this conclusion!”
Addendum (from a further internet search)
Though the closure of liquor brewing (daaru ki bhatti) reduced alcoholism in Ralegan Siddhi, some villagers continued to drink. They obtained their liquor (daaru) from neighboring villages. The villagers decided that those men would be given three warnings, after which they would be physically punished. Twelve men who were found in a drunken state even after initial warnings were tied to a temple pole with help from the youth group and flogged, whipped and beaten black and blue with an army belt. Anna Hazare says, “Doesn’t a mother administer bitter medicines to a sick child when she knows that the medicine can cure her child? The child may not like the medicine, but the mother does it only because she cares for the child. The alcoholics were punished so that their families would not be destroyed. They continued with the beatings till ALL the alcoholics gave up drinking alcohol and the village became a model village with everyone totally sober and productive members of society till today.
Fear and intimidation in Anna Hazare's 'model' village [UK Telegraph, 25 August 2011]
India's 'new Gandhi', the anti-corruption leader whose hunger strike sparked nationwide protests, led a violent campaign of fear and intimidation to create an acclaimed model village, his disciples said on Thursday.Senior aides in his model village yesterday told The Daily Telegraph he had ordered a gang of youths to destroy distilleries and publicly thrashed 'drunkards' in a campaign to ban alcohol from his village.But according to senior aides in his charitable trust and the village Gram Sabha – or assembly – his revolution was based on a strict code of behaviour and harsh and violent punishments against those who broke it.The code bans the consumption of alcohol and tobacco, compels "voluntary" labour on community projects and forbids families from having more than two children.Several senior disciples of Mr Hazare told The Daily Telegraph the ban on alcohol and the use of violence to achieve it was central to the village'stransformation.Thakaram Raut, a retired secondary schoolteacher and trustee of Anna Hazare's Hind Swaraj Trust, said Mr Hazare used a gang of young men in their twenties to attack and destroy the distilleries of those who ignored his order for them to close."Drunkards" who broke the ban on alcohol were brought to the village square, tied to a telegraph pole covered with barbed wire and personally whipped by Mr Hazare with his canvas army belt."There were 40 liquor units working. Some stopped on advice and some did not listen to him. So the youths went and destroyed the units. They were tied against the pole and were beaten by Anna Hazare personally. It happened to about ten to 15 people," he said.He told aides only he could administer the beatings because only those who, like him, had served the people "like a mother" had the right to punish them.Those thrashed by Mr Hazare eventually came to worship him, said Mr Raut."When they went to the temple, they prayed first to Annaji and then to God," he said. Mr Hazare has admitted the punishments in earlier interviews.
Anna Hazare: How an army truck driver became Gandhian activist [India Today]
"You can drink elsewhere," he told villagers. "But if anyone here is found drunk, he'd better watch out."He soon proved he meant business. A few days later when three men returned to Ralegaon drunk after a binge in a nearby village, Hazare had them tied to the temple pillars and personally flogged them with his army belt.Anna Hazare is unfazed by criticism of such behaviour. "Rural India is a harsh society," he says, "if you want change, it's sometimes necessary to be tough."
Fast: What Anna, Baba didn't learn from Gandhi [IBN Live]
Anna and his followers were tying people to trees and beating them up for drinking alcohol or chewing tobacco in his model villages of Maharashtra.
Addendum
Do also read:
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Related posts:
- Are you a BJP stooge, Mr Anna Hazare?
- Anna Hazare should be imprisoned for up to 7 years for his crimes, based on my preliminary analysis
- Anna Hazare can’t be reformed – a man without any humility or sense
- Anna Hazare – beware of singling out Congress – for that would amount to supporting BJP
- Is Anna Hazare a “moral” dictator? Has he flogged Dalits for eating meat? Let’s beware the “great” man
- Finally Anna Hazare is talking some sense – the need for a new clean party
- What is Anna Hazare talking about – re: not taking the “law into one’s hands”?
- Hazare publicly admits to criminal culpability. Anyone interested in prosecuting him?
- Giving credit where it is due: Anna Hazare has awakened India
- If Anna Hazare is a stubborn man, I’m ten times more stubborn
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Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/IqElwxh
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
Almost undoubtedly Anna Hazare has been CRIMINALLY ASSAULTING people in his village – I… http://t.co/aSWwEG1
It's probably true that Hazare has been assaulting people in his village. If a complaint is lodged, he should be punished. But for me this has nothing to do with his movement on corruption.
Hazare can be corrupt as sin and I still wouldn't care. The person is not important. It's an ad hominem fallacy to attack the person instead of the issue.
I don't care about Hazare. At all. I only care about what this current movement on corruption. His past is irrelevant to me.
Criminal Anna http://t.co/MJEkv0d It's prison time. Or are you gonna bribe your way out?
RT @RuthlessRecluse Criminal Anna http://t.co/bCNFdaq It's prison time. Or are you gonna bribe y… http://t.co/DjPxy1R #JustDoItBetter
anna to be fed 700 calories rectally. dr trehan says his constitution has come reversed http://t.co/QQRU4Ha
Very facile, Bhagwad. You claim (to on your blog) support “human rights”. What if these charges are true? In that case Anna Hazare has denied basic human rights to a number of people (even if one, then that’s a crime).
If true, he should be in jail, not on the streets.
If true, what’s to distinguish between him and the criminal MPs who are found in India’s parliament?
And if false, the author of this article should be sued for damage to reputation, and indeed, The Telegraph should be sued by Anna.
I want to know whether these charges are true. It may not matter to your very conveniently short-sighted way of looking at the world but to me a man is a WHOLE being, a moral being. If on the hand you beat people you lose your right to pretend to champion integrity in public life. I know you are a moral relativist indeed with no moral foundations, but I’m not.
And Gandhi was not. If Anna claims to be a Gandhian he must be appalled that such charges are being made against him. He should come out and clarify matters at once.
From Facebook:
Vijay Mohan I have heard Anna in a TV interview for accepting beating of people .. He has some times disallowed the people for watching TV in the village also. But he accepts that he can be a dictator for "DESH ka BHALA" God save my country..
From Facebook:
Vinayak Dave Yes.. Might have told them not to eat meat which is considered as sin as per the religious belief.. but have not made them starve for it.. four meals are easily obtained in that village and self dependent.. what else to you look for…
Sanjeev Sabhlok Violent assault is a crime, Vinayak. Please calm down. It is immaterial if someone has "given" you a livelihood if he then beats you. What are we, some animals? Please!
From FB
Aditya Upadhyay Yes he has promoted physical punishment to those who indulge in alcoholism and drugs …but tell me isn't it some thing which is done by teachers in schools parents in middle class society to teach good things to children …if gandhi ji would have this thn im sure you wouldn't even raising such objection . ..Gandhi ji use to have gals around him to give him company so why not just object that gandhi ji use to exploit young gals he must be imprisoned ??
Vishal Kumar Singh Great Aditya – What about if you as an adult was to be a receiving end of 'good' punishment. I am sure you will not mind it.
Sanjeev Sabhlok Aditya, are you saying that it is fine to beat adults? Society's views are changing even on beating children as punishment. But beating adults has been a CRIME since nearly 200 years in India.
Your example of Gandhi – I'm not aware he exploited any person below the age of 18. That would have definitely been a crime and I'd have objected to Gandhi's criminality had that been the case.
Corruption (s.7 Prevention of Corruption Act) is punishable with 5 years imprisonment, beating people and causing grievous harm is punishable with 7 years imprisonment. We need to keep things in perspective. Beating people is WORSE, in many ways, than corruption.
Hazare can go to jail only if a complaint was lodged. If not, we have no locus standii to force someone to lodge a complaint.
Hazare holds no official post – unlike an MP. Second, I've already said I don't care about Hazare. Only the movement.
This is also why I don't care about the BJP's corruption when they support Hazare. I don't indulge in ad hominem logical fallacies.
Bhagwad, I’m not mixing up two things (AH anti-corruption work with his criminality). You are. I’m currently focusing on the information I’ve read regarding AH’s personal violent character. This leads to a closer examination of his ideas, ideology, and methods. It presents a political philosophy dramatically different to mine.
On the other hand I find your views very difficult to place in any “box”. Anything seems to be randomly picked up and supported, or decried. A person (AH) can beat a number of people and that’s fine. A person can commit suicide (AH/RD) and that’s fine. It almost seems that violence is steeped into your worldview. No conception of means and ends, no conception of integrity of thought and action. There must be a particular philosophy which explains these inconsistent view, but I’m not able to place it yet. Shallow thinking as a way of life is the closest that comes to mind. Sorry, but what can I do when I simply can’t see what you stand for? Could you start by saying what you stand for?
On the other hand AH does stand for something. I can now see clear distinctions between “Gandhigiri” and what I’m trying to suggest for India. That, to me, is an important message.
I don't recall ever saying that I support Hazare beating people. In fact, I distinctly remember writing that he should be put in jail if someone levels a complaint against him in accordance with the law.
What do I stand for? I stand for the freedom to do anything one wants as long as you don't harm anyone else. But that's irrelevant to this discussion.
It's not necessary to "slot" anyone before discussing a particular issue. Labeling something that just gets in the way of logic.
Well, this discussion is all about the beating of illiterate people in a village – people who don’t know their rights.
To suggest that “I stand for the freedom to do anything one wants as long as you don’t harm anyone else” is basically a classical liberal position. I welcome your statement of intent. We may have something in common.
Unfortunately this is a simplistic statement and can lead to numerous self-contradictory interpretations without a proper theory of state. I’ve explained at length in DOF the many weaknesses of such a statement – which therefore needs a proper theory of accountability, of justice, and of the state.
If you do support the state (and I think you do), then the next step is providing a sketch of your theory of state.
I really dont understand why ur trying to make mountain out of molehill…Rural society is harsh and drinking was a menace in Ralegoan Sidhhi …Ralegoan had 40 distilleries but no food …no water…..men drank all day and beat kids and wives……now unlike us who drink and party to unwind, the story is different as far as village is concerned…………why doesnt govt allow liquor adverts on television…why did govt ban smoking in public places…why did govt ask tat cigarettes carry warning messages …..haha….why porn is banned on TV….come on …….when Anna talks of morality he is labelled as taliban………………Anna may not have a urban view of life but to say he is taliban is just over the top………he considers his village as his monastery and thats it..dont forget he was a army man before he took to gandhian way of life…..even gandhi was dead against alcoholism ……
haha now regarding cable TV….do u know my cable TV guy use to show porn late in the night……..now concept of morality is relative…if we are free society why do we have a censor board…isnt govt behaving like Anna too telling us what we should watch and what we should not…….Why dont we get to see Surya TV late night movies anymore haha……..depends how u look t people…will u let ur kids watch undesirable content……..i think one should not make mistake of judging people in isolation but see the context………..Anna is just a village patriarch and to expect him to hold urban values is sheer stupidity…so dont judge him for who he is but what he is bring onto table….
Dear Girish
There is a big difference between not doing something you don’t like and preventing others from doing it. You are welcome to NOT drink, smoke, etc., but that doesn’t give you any “natural right” to beat those who do.
If others are committing crimes, then of course the police should be informed and the law allowed to take its own course. But note that NOTHING in the law (except self-defence) authorises you to BEAT someone else. Even self-defence must be proportionate. DID ANYONE BEAT ANNA WITH A BELT FIRST? Was this in self defence?
Gandhi was of course opposed to drinking, but I haven’t heard that he used to BEAT people with an army belt. He was a GENUINE man of non-violence, a credible person.
Just because someone lives in a village and considers it his “monastry” does that give him a legal right to go about rounding up people and terrorising them? Are we living in modern India or in the medieval era?
Since when is beating people a “molehill”? Why then does IPC provide STERN penalties for beating others?
Have you ever been tied to a pole and whipped with a belt? I’d like to know whether you would consider that a “molehill”, a trifling matter, to be laughed at.
Just because POOR, ILLITERATE PERSONS (possibly Dalits) are being beaten, such beating becomes a “molehill”?
I’ve already responded. There is NO authority for anyone in India (regardless of his being a “village patriarch” to BEAT PEOPLE WITH A BELT. I don’t care what you think, but this is India we are talking about, not some medieval society without a constitution, laws, and justice system.
Should you wish to understand the concept of liberty, of justice, of the rule of law, please consider reading DOF, noting that it is a draft, so I’m still working on it.
Let’s have a FREE SOCIETY in India, not a VIOLENT MEDIEVAL SOCIETY.
What kind of rule of law ur talking abt and where is the rule of law…isnt the rule of law prerogative of rich and powerful in this country that you see the likes of Pappu Yadavs,Sadhu Yadavs,Laloo Yadavs come to power and becoming powerful ministers……how many of them have been prosecuted so far for crimes of murder rape and rioting…none…..rule of law says man is innocent until proven guilty…there has not been single case against Anna for flogging.. haha..tats precisely the reason why I'm saying ur making mountain out of molehill ………lets not get highly prejudiced against a man who has brought in reforms in his village…and hope u saw the tv images of celebrations in Ralegon…did they come across as people who have suppressed by Anna Hazare…I really want to ask u one pointed question-If u find moral degradation happening under very nose in ur family,wud u not take steps to correct…..in this culture grown up children are use to get beaten parents…i was beaten until the age of 21…in this culture we dont call a number for child services if beaten by parents………..hahahahaah
if u say Gandhi was a credible person then there millions who wud disagree with u……Didn't Gandhi sleep with young ladies to test his Bramhacharya…..I dont know why he had to thse weird things….but we still hold Gandhi in high esteem despite all his shortcomings and imperfections…..Subash chandra bose was autocratic,brutal and joined fascist forces but his patriotism was second to none…………lets leave it to people of Ralegaon Sidhis..if they have no qualms with Anna then I see no reason why we shud have any problems…………..People have forgotten how Indira Gandhi crushed peoples movement in 1975….my dad was beaten black and blue police….we all know how many people got butchered by army in Kashmir and north east……..tats what i call as Medieval …
Girish
Beating people is a “molehill”. Then why don’t you change the IPC and remove all punishment for assault?
Is that the next movement for “reform”?
And re: beating children – I agree that the social norms permit that, but NOT TYING THEM ON A POLE PUBLICLY AND FLOGGING WITH AN ARMY BELT,
S
Dear Girish
Gandhi’s credibility is now in question in my mind (http://sabhlokcity.com/2011/08/was-gandhi-un-gandhian/). However, I’m looking to see whether he committed any crime.
Re: others – are you saying that we want to GLORIFY and JUSTIFY medieval era antics? I’m NOT saying that AH has not done good for India through his IAC movement (but that “good” has been mixed up with lots of questionables, such as method used, and attitude), but that we must note that AH has broken India’s laws and criminally assaulted people in his village.
Happy for this to be proven wrong, but let’s not whitewash the truth, please.
See AH and his movement, whole – warts and all. Don’t make the mistake of condoning crimes just because certain “outcomes” are good (in your opinion).
S
lets set the record straight….do u believe in India justice system or not? if yes then Anna is clean in the eyes of law…there is not a single case against Anna for criminal assault…so why rake up useless issues when there exist none…..mere allegation is not sufficient…..courts are there to decide…I dont think Gandhiji indulged in any criminal acts……he had guts to record his experiences in his book…we have no business to comment on his personal conduct…Anna himself admitted smoked 4 packets of cigarettes and drank 2 pegs of rum …lets not defame people and look at larger issue of corruption…..
No, Girish, I don’t believe that the Indian justice system works, because I’ve been part of India’s administrative machinery. Even the supreme court doesn’t work.
But regardless of whether someone lodged a complaint against AH or not, these actions – of tying poor illiterate people to the post and beating them are NOT minor ‘behavioural eccentricities. This has nothing to do with someone’s smoking or drinking alcohol. This shows severe issues of mind and philosophy. And if AH himself drank rum, then what right on earth does he have to beat people for drinking? That info (which is news to me) indicates he has some mental issues as well, not just philosophical.
I’m waiting AH’s comments on these widespread published allegations of violence.
i think u need to be clear where u stand….one hand u say we are a working democracy and a free society and on other hand suggest courts do not work….Do u seriously believe that our society has become anarchic and there is no rule of law……..
Indeed, Girish, the justice system is in shambles. Cases go on for ever without resolution. Corruption is rampant, and innocents are often jailed.
I did NOT say that India is a free society. It is one of the world’s LEAST free societies. Please read BFN and numerous blog posts.
Re: working democracy – it is almost in tatters as well.
In other words, I’m not denying that there are genuine reasons why someone would want to take the law into their own hands. However, our job is to strengthen, not weaken India’s institutions.
Hence my goal – to try to significantly improve India’s institutions and make them work.