Washington, August 25: Prominent Sikh Americans have voiced support for social activist Anna Hazare’s campaign against corruption.
Rajwant Singh, chairman of the Sikh Council on Religion and Education, said: “Anna Hazare’s campaign has the capacity to create conditions for clean and ethical politics to survive and thrive in India.”
He also expressed confidence that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would “find a way out as he has done on many other challenging issues facing India in the recent past”.
“Corruption does to a country what termites do to the foundation of a house. For India to achieve its full potential, corruption needs to be replaced by a fair, open, and speedy method of governance at all levels,” said Navneet Chugh of The Chugh Firm, a leading law firm.
Charnjit Singh Randhawa, chairman and CEO of Washington based Rockefeller Consulting Insight Capitalists, said: “Corruption is a cancer that has suffocated every honest person in India and it is our duty to bring clean way of life to the forefront.”
Ken Bajaj, chairman and CEO of Systemsnet, also based in Washington, added: “We congratulate Anna Hazare for having the courage to lead this noble cause. Every Indian must see this as a task to convert world’s largest democracy to achieve rightful place in the world.”
India as a nation has an opportunity to transform at this critical juncture if all Indians fully engage themselves in changing situation rather than being mere spectators, is how Satinder Singh Rekhi, CEO of the Sacramento based RSystems, put it.
Darshan Singh Sehbi, faculty at the Wright State University School of Medicine Dayton, Ohio observed: “Anna is helping to focus everyone’s attention on the real issues and in that sense it is moving the country one step closer to the final goal of becoming free of corruption.”
______________
Related Stories :
NRIs in Los Angeles hold rally for Anna Hazare
http://www.pravasitoday.com/nris-in-los-angeles-hold-rally-for-anna-hazare
Mumbai, August 22: Carrying Indian flags, posters and banners with anti-corruption messages, several hundred non-resident Indians (NRIs) in Los Angeles held a rally to express solidarity with Anna Hazare’s movement in their homeland.
According to one of the organisers, Bhairavi Doshi, who is from Mumbai and has been settled there for nearly two decades, the rally was held Sunday.
“Indians settled or working in the US are supporting this fight against corruption in India. We wanted to let people in India know that we are with you and we will do everything to support you guys. Be strong, we are getting closer and closer to winning this battle,” Bhairavi told IANS in an e-mail.
“The participants raised slogans supporting Hazare, who has become a much-admired figure among Indians here,” said another participant, Amit Sonpal, who is originally from south Gujarat.
Sonpal said Hazare’s crusade against corruption had generated tremendous interest among Indians in the US.
“We are keenly watching the movement on internet, Twitter, as well as through some international television channels beamed from India,” he said.
The duo said over the next few days, they plan to hold similar rallies in other parts of the US West Coast to drum up support for Hazare’s cause.
Hazare has been fasting since Aug 16 for a strong anti-corruption bill and his protest site now is the sprawling Ramlila Maidan in the heart of Delhi.
_________________________________________
Independence day: Indians in US pledge against corruption
http://www.pravasitoday.com/independence-day-indians-in-us-pledge-against-corruption
Washington, August 15: Indians across America celebrated India’s 65th Independence Day with flag hoisting ceremonies at Indian missions and India day parades in seven major cities with a call against corruption in their homeland.
At the Indian embassy in Washington, the Deputy Chief of Mission Arun Kumar Singh hoisted the Indian tricolour Monday in front of the embassy overlooking a statue of Mahatma Gandhi.
After the singing of the national anthem, the gathered Indian community waving small Indian flags moved inside the embassy where Singh read out President Pratibha Patil’s message to the nation. Patriotic songs were sung in Bengali and Hindi followed by a feast of pan-Indian snacks.
Similar functions were held at the Indian consulates in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Houston and the Indian mission at the UN.
Earlier, India Day parades were held Sunday in Washington DC, New Jersey, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco by India Against Corruption (IAC) and People for Loksatta (PFL), which had initiated Dandi march-II, a 240 mile walk in support of social activist Anna Hazare in March.
At the biggest event in New Jersey, some 180 people wearing white T-shirts, Gandhi caps and waving the Indian national flags walked along Oak Tree Road in pouring rain shouting slogans like “We Want Jan Lokpal”, “I Am Anna”, “Anna We Are With You” and “Anna Hazare – Desh Tere Saath Hai!, Videsh Tere Saath Hai!!”.
Many volunteers carried placards saying – “I am Anna” and “It is not one Anna. We are Thousands” in English, Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Marathi and a few other Indian languages.
Young and old participants from all walks of life, technologists, engineers, business men, doctors, students, children and a few pregnant women too joined the celebrations chanting Vande Mataram and Jai Hind and singing “Hum Honge Kamyaab” (We shall overcome). The march ended with the singing of India’s national anthem.
In Houston NRIs and volunteers of several organisations like IAC, PFL, 5th Pillar and Bharat Swabhiman joined a gathering near Mahatma Gandhi’s statue.
Similar community functions were organized in Washington DC, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.