India Against Corruption

Anti-corruption movement in India

India Against Corruption (IAC) is a non-political anti-corruption movement in India since 2007 which was particularly prominent during the anti-corruption protests of 2011 and 2012. Divisions among key constituents of the IAC eventually led to Arvind Kejriwal leaving to form the Aam Aadmi Party.

Rise

The IAC popular movement which began in 2007^[1]^[2] expanded as part of a larger wave of demonstrations and protests from 2010.^[3] that they hoped would help to bring about a corruption-free India. The campaign gained strength through social media, building a massive network of supporters. Initially, they approached Ramdev, a populist Indian yogi to be the figurehead for this campaign but his connections to the right-wing Sangh Parivar threatened to damage the credibility of what was perceived as an apolitical movement.^{[citation needed]} This led to him being replaced by Anna Hazare, a veteran social reformer. Hazare, too, brought a large support base with him, described by Meera Nanda as being largely "from urban middle-classes and idealistic youth". The urban sophistication of Hazare, compared to Ramdev's rusticity, attracted high-profile support for the campaign from Bollywood stars, the internet-savvy, and mainstream English-language news media.^[4]

Internal split

In 2012, the IAC began to splinter from Hazare's followers then popularly known as "Team Anna".^[5]^[6] By August 2012, the split had deepened caused by differences of opinion among the central figures. An IAC survey of the masses suggested that direct involvement in politics was preferable, leading to Arvind Kejriwal and some others splitting to form the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Hazare rejected the survey findings and announced he was disbanding Team Anna.^[7]^[8]^[9]

In November 2012, after the split, he said that he was forming a new Team Anna, that it would retain the label of India Against Corruption and that its members were discussing other societal issues to be addressed.^[10]^[11]

References

^ Desk, Web (15 September 2020). "Rahul says AAP was propped up by BJP to bring down UPA, subvert democracy". The Week. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
^ https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/iac-rejects-congress-s-conspiracy-charge-against-forum-117122500566_1.html
^ Ghosh, Abantika (29 December 2011). "Shifting stir to Mumbai a mistake: IAC". The Indian Express. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
^ Nanda, Meera (2011). The God Market: How Globalization is Making India More Hindu. NYU Press. pp. xxii–xxiii. ISBN 9781583673096.
^ https://www.indiatoday.in/india/north/story/lokpal-anna-hazare-india-against-corruption-89018-2012-01-08
^ 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.
^ "Anna Hazare tells Arvind Kejriwal not to use his name, photo for votes as they part ways". India Today. New Delhi. PTI. 19 September 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
^ "So what is the Aam Aadmi Party all about". India Today. New Delhi. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
^ "Hazare disbands Team Anna, says no talks with govt on Lokpal". The Times of India. 6 August 2012. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
^ "After announcing team, Anna Hazare to inaugurate new office in Delhi". IBN Live. 11 November 2012. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
^ "Team Anna gets new people. But will their gameplan be a game-changer?". India Today. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2013.