Ramdev arrested: Opposition slams police crackdown on Ramdev, BJP targets PM, Sonia

NEW DELHI: The entire opposition today slammed the police action against Baba Ramdev's hunger strike as a "shameful" chapter in India's democracy with the main opposition party accusing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi of ordering the crackdown.

BJP announced it would hold protests across the country against corruption and "police brutality" against Ramdev and his followers.

"The incident that took place yesterday at midnight at the Ramlila ground is one that has blemished democracy. Those people were protesting against corruption and black money through democratic means. But Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi ordered the atrocities on these people," BJP President Nitin Gadkari said in Lucknow.

In Delhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said the police action was carried out at the directions of the Prime Minister and had the "full approval" of the Congress President.

"This is not democracy...the police cannot alone had taken such a step. It had the approval of the Prime Minister and full approval of the Congress President," Swaraj said.

Her counterpart in the Rajya Sabha, Arun Jaitley said while government refuses to take action against separatist leaders like Syed Ali Shah Geelani who held a programme in the capital, it took action against a "patriotic sanyasi".

In Patna, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar described the use of 'brute force' to evict Ramdev and his supporters as a "major blow to democracy".

"It is a major blow to democracy and an attack on the democractic rights of the people ... It is also an attack on the fundamental rights of the citizens," Kumar said.

"As many as four central ministers and top officials were holding parleys with Ramdev for several days and reverentially describing him as 'Baba'. What compelled the government to change its tactics and take extreme actions against the protesters?" he said.