Thousands gathered at Jantar Mantar, Delhi on Sunday to show solidarity to social activist Anna Hazare's onday protest seeking security to whistleblowers in anti-corruption cases. Team Anna members were all smiles as the crowd swelled by the hour. While Kiran Bedi and Arvind Kejriwal took turns to launch a scathing attack on the government while addressing the crowd, a rejuvenated Anna Hazare said the government should vacate office in 2014 if it could not bring a strong Lokpal bill.

Before starting his token fast for a day, Hazare said many people have sacrificed their lives while fighting corruption. "Their (whistleblowers') mothers, their children, their fathers, their wives are crying for justice. But this government has gone dumb and deaf. It is not listening to the cries of people," he said. Hazare demanded that FIRs be registered against 14 "corrupt" cabinet ministers by August failing which Team Anna would launch a "jail bharo andolan" across the country. "We have to be ready for this. Dates will be announced later," he said. "Twenty-five people were murdered for fighting against corruption. We have been stressing on a law to protect whistleblowers, but the government doesn't seem to be ready."

Sunday's fast, called in the wake of the murder of IPS officer Narendra Kumar by the mining mafia in Madhya Pradesh on March 8. Family members of Kumar and other whistleblowers narrated their experiences to the crowd. Also, giant screens kept telecasting short clips on 25 whistleblowers who have been killed while fighting corruption. Another whistleblower, Mahendra Kumar Sharma was killed for exposing irregularities in the National Rural Health Mission in Uttar Pradesh. His son Tushar said "senior officers in the administration have threatened us with dire consequences if we name big shots". "No one is bothered about us," he said.

Jantar Mantar was teeming with people in Anna caps holding the Tricolour even before Hazare appeared on the dais a little after eleven in the morning, shouting "Vande Mataram, Bharat Mata Ki Jai and Inquilab Zindabad". Before finishing his speech Hazare vowed to continue his fight for a strong Lokpal. "We will show them (the government) people's power in the 2014 elections. Not just this, we would fight to get the right to reject as well," he said.