No fight with Anna Hazare, says Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal played down criticism by Anna Hazare of his anti-corruption group getting into politics, saying there was no fight between the two and they were combating graft through different routes.

Kejriwal, who met Hazare for the first time after they split on the question of forming a political party, said, "We came to meet him as he is in Delhi. We have a relationship. There is no fight between us. He himself has said the goal is same though the paths are different.0

"We told him that whenever needed, we are there to help you. He told us media is creating an impression that there is a fight," he said after his 20-minute meeting with the Gandhian.

The anti-corruption crusader had yesterday fired a salvo at the Kejriwal-led group, saying they had not responded to his questions on how to present a political alternative to the people in the fight against corruption and dubbed the path of politics as one "full of dirt".

The path of "politics is not sacred and it is full of dirt" but the route of agitation is "sacred", the social activist had said.

Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia arrived at N D Tiwari Bhavan near ITO where Hazare is holding a meeting with retired bureaucrats and others on the next course of action regarding his apolitical anti-corruption movement.

The meeting came a day ahead of the likely announcement by Kejriwal on formation of his party.

The septuagenarian activist split with Kejriwal-led group on September 19, saying he was opposed to the movement taking a political plunge.

Contending that a big movement and not politics will give the country its future, Hazare had said he told the pro-party group that the route of politics was "not the right direction".

"I did not give an alternative. When I was told that an alternative has to be given, I said it is a good idea but I asked them to answer my 5-6 questions (on how to provide an alternative). But I did not get those answers," he said.

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