Aiyar blasts UPA handling of Anna; praises Pranab Mukherjee

From Natasha Chaku
Melbourne, Sep 21 (PTI) Indain diplomat-turned-politician
Mani Shankar Aiyar on Thursday tore into UPA's handling of
Anna Movement, which he said was a "Frankenstein monster"
created by the central government itself.
He however, lauded the role of Indian Finance Minister
Pranab Mukherjee in sorting out the matter, stating that the
issue was "tactically" and "strategically" handled very badly
till the senior most minister took charge.
Aiyar, who is here for a conference, said the government
has not been as sure footed as it ought to in tackling Anna
Hazare or Baba Ramdev.
"Every democratic government goes through its bad
patches...I hope we can get through this," he said.
Aiyar said that Anna Movement was very badly handled by
the government and was "like a Frankenstein monster created by
themselves".
"If Anna had not been privileged the way which he was, it
would not have mattered the way it mattered, and in
privileging him I don't think we were working towards any
consistent objective," Aiyar told PTI on the sidelines of the
Australia India Institute (AII) conference on 'The reluctant
Superpower: India and its aspirations'.
"Every now and then we resile and go back on him and
bunk him, put him in Tihar jail does not make sense," he
added.
Aiyar, however, lauded the role of Mukherjee in sorting
out the issue, stating that the matter was "tactically" and
"strategically" handled very badly till the Finance Minister
took charge.
"And the minute he took charge less than a week the issue
was sorted out," he said.