“Case Study on Anna Hazare” - Professor M.S.Rao

“The dream of India as a strong nation will not be realised without self-reliant, self-sufficient villages, this can be achieved only through social commitment & involvement of the common man." - Anna Hazare


With the continuous fast of social activist, Anna Hazare the crusade against corruption is reaching to peak position where the health of Anna Hazare has become more concern for the people than the crusade against corruption. The Anna frenzy has caught the nation like wildfire never before in the history of free India connecting all Indians and bringing them into one platform. Anna’s rising popularity reminds people of referent power where people wield this power not by position but by stature. Although he doesn’t hold any public office he still wields more power than the people in public life. Here is the brief biography of Anna.


Anna’s Profile

Anna Hazare was born on 15 June 1937 in Bhingar of erstwhile Bombay Province. His original name was Kisan Baburao Hazare and later he was affectionately called as Anna Hazare. He joined in Indian Army as a driver in 1963. He took voluntary retirement from Indian army in 1978 after serving for 12 years. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1990 and Padma Bhushan in 1992. His crusade against corruption has made him household name in India.


Anna’s Referent Power

Leadership and power are closely connected as we see in the case of Anna Hazare who wields referent power to make a difference to Indian society by crusading against corruption. According to social psychologists, John French and Bertam Raven power is divided into five forms - legitimate, coercive, reward, expert and referent power. One who holds his power just because of his legal standing vested in him by organization is known as legitimate power. Such people hold power as long as they hold their legitimate positions. Coercive power is a negative power such as threats or punishments that usually prevail in autocratic societies and such people are hardly respected. Reward power is the ability to reward others and people enjoy their positions as long as they reward others. Expert power is about the position where people have expertise in some areas. Precisely, they are domain experts. Finally, referent power is the power where people enjoy status not bestowed by law or position but just because people admire such leaders. Leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, Dalai Lama and Mother Teresa enjoyed referent power as people revered and supported them. Similarly, Anna Hazare began earning acceptance all over India and the world through his simplicity and humility. People across the country cutting across religions, regions, languages and cultures began batting for him. Hence, Anna Hazare enjoys referent power currently. Only the time will tell how long he will continue his crusade against corruption. Government of India must immediately come out with viable and feasible solutions to declare war against corruption by losing its personal battle against Anna Hazare. Here are the lessons that you can learn from Anna Hazare’s magical leadership:

• Lead from front. As any leader leads from front braving all challenges Anna leads from front braving all challenges from political parties, bureaucrats and critics.
• Find out the common cause and work on it. He found out the common cause of corruption and gained the momentum to cleanse the current corrupt political system.
• Spot the leadership vacuum and fill it. He realized that no leader is taking the issue of corruption seriously. He plunged and filled the vacuum thus excelling as messiah.
• Be a risk taker. By starting the fast he risked his life. Few critics felt that this fast will fall flat like Ramdev’s fast. To the surprise of many, he got overwhelming support from all quarters.
• Talk less and do more. His actions prove that he is a practical man who speaks less but delivers more goods.
• Above all, walk your talk. He is not a typical politician to go on fast for political reasons such as hankering after power. There is no gap between his words and deeds.

Anna is a bachelor and was a solider who decided to dedicate his life for fighting against corruption. He has become the leadership icon. Since no movement can survive without strong ideology Anna must expand the present movement against corruption broadly thus cleaning the entire democratic system. So far no leader has earned the credibility among the masses the way Anna earned. He must live up to his ideals and values to make India stronger and vibrant. Presently people are scared to take bribes as there are apprehensions among the people. It is a positive sign in the larger interests of our nation.

Anna Hazare derives his power from people. He does not have any legitimate power except people and you cannot ignore people in democracy as politicians have to approach people for votes during elections. Anna’s movement is a great bloodless revolution that is expected to bring drastic changes within the society. It not only brings change in the mindset of the politicians but also people as a whole who are vexed with rampant corruption while hosting Commonwealth Games and in 2G spectrum. Drastic changes in reforms are needed to cleanse the present system. People often talk birth of another Mahatma Gandhi. We can say that Anna is another Gandhi who wants to make a significant difference in the lives of Indians by crusading against corruption.

Although democratically elected government is superior to civil movement, it cannot ignore the voice of the people who are advocating Anna Hazare. It is time the government view the situation carefully and take necessary steps before people lose their confidence on it. The movement should not be viewed against Congress government and it has to be viewed against corruption that is prevailing across the country plaguing all political parties in India. Politicians should learn lessons from such movements before it is too late. Instead of looking at Anna’s personal weaknesses and loopholes government of India must focus on the bill with flexibility to bring the change before they are asked to change their government by the people. Margaret Mead rightly noted, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”



Professor M.S.Rao
Founder and Chief Consultant,
MSR Leadership Consultants, India
Blog: http://profmsr.blogspot.com
Where Knowledge is Wealth
Email: profmsr7@gmail.com



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