Unlike in the past, crowds that had thronged the protest venue were missing now. The organisers issued appeals to "mothers, wives and daughters" to flock to the protest site at Jantar Mantar tomorrow.
The crowd count in the afternoon was less than 1,000, a marginal improvement from morning's 600, in a contrast to its earlier protests when Jantar Mantar, the dharna hotspot, was jampacked. The response to the fast on the first day yesterday was also modest with 2,500-3,000 people attending it.
Anna Hazare and his aides took the dais at 11 AM only though a Team Anna spokesperson said they had reached the spot an hour before. They were greeted with lukewarm chants of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai, Vande Mataram and Inquilab Zindabad'.
The counters for donation, information, volunteer registration wore a deserted look while more than half of the protest venue was empty.
As there were no action taking place and less enthusiasm in the crowd, media persons who were in large numbers also took a break from live coverage.
Arvind Kejriwal, one of the three Team Anna members who is fasting, went to Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh to attend a court hearing on his remarks against MPs calling them "criminals and rapists". Before leaving for the court, he said he did not think he had done anything wrong.
Apparently worried over the low attendance, Team Anna member Kiran Bedi appealed to the protesters to bring their "wives, mothers and daughters" to the venue tomorrow.
"Regret to see audience is predominantly male. It is said that we vote for a saree or a bottle of alcohol. We are being fooled. More than 50 per cent of those who vote are women. Why are they not seen here?" she said. MORE
