Dehradun:  After a doctor publicly announced that Baba Ramdev is in good health, the yoga icon was discharged from a Dehradun Hospital.  He addressed a press conference where he declared that “India has woken up to corruption.”  He ended his nine-day hunger fast on Sunday, but said his struggle against corruption and black money continues.
Baba Ramdev thanked his supporters for standing by him but criticized the government for dismantling his huge yoga camp plus sit-in-protest in Delhi on June 5.  The police lathi-charged and teargassed the 65,000 people who were with Baba Ramdev at Ramlila Maidan; the yoga teacher was evicted and flown back to Uttarakhand.  “What happened that night will never be forgotten,” he said, “that was a dark night… we didn’t do anything wrong by holding a peaceful protest.”
At the beginning of the month, the government spent considerable time and effort on wooing the Baba, promising to pay attention to his list of demands if he decided to cancel his hunger strike.  The Baba wants the government to recover black money from foreign bank accounts and confiscate it so the un-taxed money can be treated as “a national asset.”  Four ministers rushed to the airport to receive him when he landed in Delhi.  After days of negotiations, however, the gloves came off.  While the Baba was in the first few hours of his hunger strike, the government disclosed a letter where the Baba had committed -even before starting his fast-  to ending it on the first day.  The Baba had clearly struck a deal with the government, those who were negotiating with him said – a deal that he did not disclose to his lakhs of supporters. The Baba’s team retaliated that the agreement had served as a tactical move.
The government ordered the police to break up the Baba’s fast.  Late at night, when many were sleeping at the camp, the police got to work.
Opposition parties said the government’s action was “a murder of democracy.” Other activists like Gandhian Anna Hazare rose to the Baba’s defense. Till the Baba made the unwise pronouncement that he would train an army of 11,000 young men and women who would be equipped to strike back if they were attacked.  Brakes screeched.  Mr Hazare’s team said they could not support a statement which threatened violence.  The government said the Baba had shown his true colours, and then accused him of being backed by the right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS).
On Friday, the high-drama narrative continued as the Baba was moved out of his ashram on a stretcher and taken to hospital.  Doctors said he was in poor medical shape.  His fast had impacted his liver and his blood pressure.  He was given glucose. After a series of visits by spiritual guru Sr Sri Ravishankar and others, Baba Ramdev agreed to end his fast on Sunday.