Patna, Aug. 16: Social activist Anna Hazare has won support from an unexpected quarter — the Maoists.

Three top leaders of the CPI(Maoist) have launched a fast-unto-death inside the special central jail at Bhagalpur to extend their support to Hazare.

The superintendent of Bhagalpur special central jail, Jitendra Kumar, denied the report of any agitation inside the prison but sources said central committee members of CPI(Maoist) — Vijay Kumar Arya, V. Subramanium and Pulendu Shekhar Mukherjee — launched the agitation today in support of Hazare.

The three Maoist leaders, who have been booked on the charges of sedition, had shot off letters to the jail authorities about two weeks ago seeking permission to stage a dharna inside the jail from August 16 to extend their support to Hazare’s movement against corruption. “It is not known to me whether the jail administration allowed them to launch peaceful agitation or not. But they were adamant on launching their agitation from today,” a close associate of Arya lodged in the special cells like the former said.

A large number of inmates of Beur Central Jail in the state capital also joined the agitation by extending their moral support to Hazare. Several inmates refused to take sweets and dinner on August 15 to express their solidarity. The inmates, including former MP Pappu Yadav, former village head Ritlal Yadav, engineer Sashi Kant and journalist Ravish Kumar Mani reportedly returned the sweet packets distributed to them.

The administration had made special arrangements for Independence Day at the high security prison housing over 300 hardcore Maoists, including the alleged mastermind of Jehanabad jailbreak Ajay Kanu and many criminals.