Ramdev should give up yoga, says Digvijaya Singh

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi:  Unlike others in his party, Digvijaya Singh is not afraid of taking on Baba Ramdev, the yoga icon who plans to launch an indefinite hunger fast against corruption tomorrow.

"If Ramdev wants to do politics, he should give up yoga," said Mr Singh, who is General Secretary of the Congress. Earlier this week, Mr Singh accused Mr Ramdev of using his mass-yoga sessions to make crores. This, Mr Singh opined, means that Mr Ramdev cannot be taken seriously as a crusader of all things pure and good.

"Baba Ramdev is not a guru, he’s a businessman. If Congress were scared of him, it would have put Ramdev behind bars. Ramdev is more of a businessman now. He charges Rs. 50,000 for teaching yoga," Mr Singh had said.

In Delhi, however, the government spent Friday trying to woo Mr Ramdev away from his hunger strike. The Baba wants the government to explain how it will tackle the vast amounts of black money that have been stored in foreign bank accounts by Indians. He also wants the death penalty to be awarded in corruption cases. Two ministers - Kapil Sibal and Subodh Kant Sahay - met with him at the Claridges Hotel - a five-star in Delhi - to address his charter of demands which also includes using local languages instead of English as the medium of instruction in medical and engineering colleges.