Veteran social activist Mr Anna Hazare said he will go ahead with his fast unto death on August 16 and court arrest with his supporters if he is stopped. He also called on people in villages around the country to court arrest.

On Monday, the Delhi Police refused to grant Team Anna permission to fast at Jai Prakash Narayan Park unless they met all 22 conditions. Agency reports said prohibitory orders had been clamped in the area.

The police decision came after Mr Hazare's team refused to give an undertaking restricting the number of days of protests to three and protestors to 5,000. Later, at a crowded press conference, Mr Hazare widened the ambit of his Lokpal Bill plank and gave a call for the fight for ‘parivartan', or change, in the system. He raised issues such as land-grab, exploitation of tribals and natural resources.“This Government is intoxicated with power and money,” he declared.

He said he was not against Parliament, but the Bill that had been presented was flawed. Reacting to what he called the Government's move to “crush democracy” Mr Hazare said if need be “we may have to go the Chhatrapati Shivaji way”.

As temperatures rose, senior lawyer Mr Prashant Bhushan threatened to move the court against the Delhi Police for denying permission for the protest fast.

The Delhi Police, too, are said to be seeking the services of two magistrates from the Delhi Government to help handle the law and order situation during the proposed protest. The Union Home Secretary, Mr R.K. Singh, held a meeting at the Police Headquarters here to take stock of the measures to tackle any “untoward situation.”

Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and Mr Rahul Gandhi met senior Congress leaders, including Mr Pranab Mukherjee and Ms Ambika Soni, at the AICC headquarters to discuss the controversy surrounding developments over Mr Hazare's proposed fast, sources said. Party leaders remained tight-lipped about the meeting and the talks.

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