Thaindian News

New Delhi, Oct 18 (IANS) Law Minister Salman Khurshid Tuesday said the government was caught unawares by the anti-corruption campaign led by Anna Hazare but had “learnt a lot” from the movement.

“It is not just a movement but a significant movement, and I acknowledge that we have learnt a lot from that movement. I think we were caught a little bit unawares about some change beginning to happen in Indian society,” Khurshid told journalists at the Indian Women Press Corps here.

He said the government could not analyse the social media’s impact on the society. “It is an attitude, policy, strategy, reflection and part of changing society.

“The Anna Hazare movement was a remarkable combination of traditional politics with non-conventional and very modern politics. We were frankly at a disadvantage as we didn’t use social media as effectively as Anna Hazare used it. They used Twitter, Facebook, sms and email. They did a remarkable job,” said Khurshid.

However, he said that it is easier to do a good job when one is outside the government and a little more difficult when in power.

“You can get away with a lot more flexibility in what you are saying and the views you are expressing when you are outside government than in the government,” he said.

He called reports of cracks in Team Anna as “premature judgment”.

“The more they begin to look as being part of an institutional set-up, the more difficult you will find it gets for them to articulate a position now.

“Every day they are contradicting themselves… they are indicating there are cracks amongst themselves. People are now even saying that the Anna movement is falling apart,” said the lawyer.

Khurshid said the government doesn’t regret how it handled the situation during the Anna movement as it was dealing with something completely new.

“One thing I find very strange was that members of Anna Hazare movement are not taking credit for what they have done… They are taking credit for Hisar and many other things but not for a fundamental and important shift that has taken place with respect to politicians’ approach to the whole idea of Lokpal,” he said.

Khurshid denied there will be any delay in passing of the Lokpal bill if the institution is accorded the status of a constitutional body.