No open ground for Hazare's aides to campaign in poll-bound Uttrakhand

Kaushambi, (Uttar Pradesh) Jan 20 (ANI): The election campaign of veteran social activist and anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare and his team hit a roadblock in Uttarakhand on Friday after the team was denied permission to organise a rally in an open ground in Haridwar.

The veteran crusader, had earlier announced that he would campaign against the Congress Party in all five poll-bound states for not drafting a strong ombudsman bill and failing to get it passed in Parliament's winter session in December last year.

With the first phase of the campaign scheduled to begin in Haridwar on Saturday, team Hazare was denied permission to hold a rally at the spacious Rishikul College grounds.

Close aide of Hazare, Manish Sisodia, responsible for coordinating the logistics, informed mediapersons in Kaushambi, Uttar Pradesh that after running two days from pillar to post, the team was asked to shift the venue to an auditorium.

"They bothered us for two days, asked to move from this office to that office, several departments, we were asked to wait for several hours and they made several excuses and after all the ordeal and with just 30 hours remaining for our rally, we were told that rally cannot be organized on the ground and they asked us to hold the rally in another hall," said Sisodia.

Commenting on Anna Hazare's health, Sisodia informed that a team of doctors from a hospital in Pune, Maharashtra, visited Ralegan Siddhi to examine him.

"The doctors who examined him at the hospital in Pune, they visited Ralegan Siddhi today to conduct a check-up on Hazare. The change in the weather is taking a bit of toll on his health. However, there is nothing to worry and his health is recovering," Sisodia added. (ANI)