Low turnout as Anna continues fast

Social activist Anna Hazare and and his anti-corruption group, better known as Team Anna, witnessed a low turnout at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan where the group is holding parallel fast beside the MMRDA Ground in Mumbai where Anna himself is on a three-day fast.

Both the venues have witnessed poor turnout both on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The 30,000-capacity Ramlila Maidan was hardly packed on both days of the movement.

Large number of people had attended the Ramlila Maidan when Anna was on a 12-day fast in the national capital in August this year.

Lower number of Anna followers attended the fast at MMRDA Grounds where Anna himself is fasting since Tuesday.

A cardboard cutout of Anna replaced the 74-year-old corruption crusader on the stage at Mumbai's MMRDA Ground early Wednesday as he battled high fever and blood pressure, still adamant on continuing his hunger strike for the Lokpal Bill.

As a near-midnight drive by lawmakers after a stormy debate in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday concluded with the passing of the Lokpal Bill and the rejection of the linking constitutional amendment, Anna's health deteriorated sparking concern among his supporters.

Despite grim health, the self-styled Gandhian activist on Tuesday had began a three-day hunger strike demanding the enactment of a strong iteration of the anti-corruption Lokpal Bill from the government, criticised as reluctant to crack down on all-pervasive graft.

Brushing off calls from his doctors, prominent social figures and his key aides to end his fast, Anna appeared determined to go through with the protest and gave an impassioned speech about the need for sacrifice, at 3 pm on Tuesday.

After a checkup on Wednesday morning, doctors said that Anna did not need to be hospitalised yet even though his temperature and blood pressure were fluctuating.