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Team Anna, was a populist anti-corruption movement in India. It sought to mobilise the masses in support of their demands for a less corrupt society in India. It was headed mostly by middle-class professionals and lawyers and was particularly prominent during the anti-corruption protests of 2011 and 2012, the central point of which was debate concerning the introduction of a Jan Lokpal bill.

Team Anna is distinct from the "India Against Corruption" organization campaigning for Right to Information which (between 2010-2011) had loaned its name to Arvind Kejriwal for the ongoing anti-corruption movements in the country. "Team Anna"'s (ie. Anna Hazare's core committee) membership diverged at various points in time, eventually resulting in forming of Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party and Hazare's Jantantra Morcha in November 2012.

Origins of Team Anna

Anna Hazare's role in the campaign

Anna Hazare, a veteran social reformer has a history of undertaking fasts in support of his causes and had a support base comprising mostly middle-class people from urban areas and idealistic youths. Hazare's urban profile attracted high-visibility support for Anna's Jan Lokpal Bill campaign from Bollywood stars and mainstream English-language news media, however, Hazare's inability to delink himself from Hindutva symbolism saw support from non-Hindus less forthcoming.

Team Anna in 2011

Team Anna's Mumbai MMRDA "fiasco"

Friction between the Delhi and Mumbai wings of Team Anna had the figureheads in the movement disputing an unregistered organisation's ("Jagruk Nagrik Manch" which claimed to be "India Against Corruption") action of approaching the Bombay High Court. The Bombay High Court had slammed Team Anna and said "Whether the organisation is genuine is to be ascertained by the authority (MMRDA)". On 24.12.2011 a registered NGO Public Cause Research Foundation instead approached the MMRDA to book the venue for Team Anna's event whereupon another controversy arose over PCRF's sources of funds for Team Anna's stir which caused Anna to admit "Going to the high court was a mistake" and a miffed Anna later abruptly abandoned his stir after the low turnout and his sister being "humiliated" by Team Anna (Mumbai) volunteers at the fast venue.

Divergence in 2012

In 2012 the non-ideological IAC movement began to splinter and Hazare's forces gathered into what was known as "Team Anna". In August 2012, around the time that the divisions were coming to a head, Hazare announced that he was disbanding Team Anna.

By late 2012 the vertical splits in Team Anna caused by differences of opinion among the central figures regarding its lack of practical success and how much this might have been due to its unwillingness to be directly engaged in the political system. A survey had suggested that direct involvement in politics was preferable, leading to Arvind Kejriwal and some others splitting to form the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in order to cause change from within the system. Hazare rejected the Kejriwal faction's survey findings.

Disputes over the IAC name

On 26.10.2012 IAC and Team Anna agreed that Arvind Kejriwal's faction would completely exit from IAC within 1 month under any circumstances to form their political party with a substantially different name to pursue Team Anna's Lokpal agenda.

On 10 November 2012 Hazare said in the Maharashtra Sada New Delhi that he was forming a new team and would open their own office in New Delhi and the label of India Against Corruption would stay with him and not Kejriwal.

The new Team Anna, sometimes referred to as Team Anna 2.0, was preparing to tour the country from 30 January 2013, coinciding with the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. When that day came, Hazare announced that he had formed Jantantra Morcha, a campaigning group that included the previously-named members of Team Anna 2.0 and which he considered to be a replacement for IAC but with a broader agenda.

Notable people

Notable members of IAC/Team Anna prior to the breakaway of the Aam Aadmi Party were:

• Anna Hazare
• Arvind Kejriwal
• Shanti Bhushan
• Prashant Bhushan
• Santosh Hegde
• Shazia Ilmi
• Medha Patkar
• Gopal Rai
• Sanjay Singh
• Manish Sisodia
• Kiran Bedi
• Kumar Vishwas

Following the split with the AAP, notable members were:

• Arvind Gaur
• Sunita Godara
• Akhil Gogoi
• Anna Hazare
• Santosh Hegde
• Kiran Bedi
• Medha Patkar

See also

• Corruption in India

Notes

References

1. Roy, Sarbajit (25 December 2011). "Timely rap for Team Anna". Mail Today. Retrieved 10 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
2. Nanda, Meera (2011). The God Market: How Globalization is Making India More Hindu. NYU Press. pp. xxii–xxiii. ISBN 9781583673096.
3. Roy, Sarbajit (25 December 2011). "Timely rap for Team Anna". Mail Today. Retrieved 10 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
4. Ghosh, Abantika (29 December 2011). "Shifting stir to Mumbai a mistake: IAC". Indian Express. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
5. Tyagi, Ankit (23 December 2011). "Bombay High Court slams Team Anna". Headlines Today. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
6. "Press release, MMRDA payment details". IAC Mumbai. 24 December 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2014. {{cite news}}: |first= missing |last= (help)
7. "Small-time Mumbai builder temporarily 'sponsors' Anna stir". DNA News. 25 December 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
8. Tyagi, Ankit (05 January 2012). "Cracks appear between Team Anna's Delhi and Mumbai groups after MMRDA fiasco". Mail Today. Retrieved 10 September 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
9. Schoen, Douglas E. (2013). The End of Authority: How a Loss of Legitimacy and Broken Trust Are Endangering Our Future. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 185–186. ISBN 9781442220324.
10. "Hazare disbands Team Anna, says no talks with govt on Lokpal". The Times of India. 6 August 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
11. "Anna Hazare tells Arvind Kejriwal not to use his name, photo for votes as they part ways". New Delhi: India Today. PTI. 19 September 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
12. "So what is the Aam Aadmi Party all about". New Delhi: India Today. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
13. Singh, Raminder (26 October 2012). "IAC name revoked for Team Anna". Indianewsco.com. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
14. "After announcing team, Anna Hazare to inaugurate new office in Delhi". IBN Live. 11 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
15. "Team Anna gets new people. But will their gameplan be a game-changer?". India Today. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
16. ^ "Team Anna 2.0 announced, will tour country from January 30". NDTV. 10 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
17. Gaikwad, Rashi (31 January 2013). "IAC is now Jantantra Morcha, says Anna". The Hindu. Retrieved 23 November 2013.

Further reading

• Hensman, Rohini (September 2011). "Converging agendas: Team Anna and the Indian Right". Retrieved 23 November 2013.
• Megwanshi, Bhanwar (5 September 2011). "India: The Communal Character of Anna Hazare's Movement". Retrieved 23 November 2013.

• Use dmy dates from June 2013
• Corruption in India
• Political advocacy groups in India
• Anti-corruption activism