Indian police detained yoga guru Baba Ramdev during a protest against corruption near the parliament, an untimely incident for the Congress-led government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, amid efforts to revive political power, reports the Financial Times.
The saffron robe-clad Ramdev led the crowd of peasant farmers and middle-class urban Indians but insisted that the demonstration remain peaceful. Mr. Ramdev attacked the government’s corruption and wealthy Indians’ “black money”. He said that the government had become “completely deaf” adding that “this protest is to ensure that no dishonest person enters parliament” alluding to the 2014 general elections.
He reportedly avoided confrontation during his arrest and urged his supporters to “seek arrest and fill the jails”. Police escorted the crowd to the Ambedkar Stadium where they continued their demonstration, vowing to stay overnight.
Critics accused Mr. Ramdev of hypocrisy, claiming that the guru also owns foreign assets. Congress leaders said that the opposition Bharatiya Janata party is using Mr. Ramdev as a political front.
