Anti-evangelist activists turn violent: 300 buses damaged

Anti-evangelist activists turn violent: 300 buses damaged

The Sangh Parivar leaders, who were arrested, demanded an inquiry into the evangelist’s claims about performing miracles.

Deccan Herald

Around 300 buses, including nearly 250 state-run buses, were damaged and nearly 100 persons were injured in the City on Friday when the protests against the Benny Hinn’s programme turned violent.

The violence disrupted normal life in the city and damaged property worth crores of rupees. The police seemed to have been caught unawares by the rioting that started from Thursday night itself, when residents were fast asleep.

The violence broke out in residential areas where the police thought would remain peaceful. Security arrangements focused largely on the evangelist’s prayer venue at Jakkur and on the main routes leading to the venue. While some protesters went on foot, threw stones at vehicles and fled, others went by two-wheelers, damaged vehicles and escaped.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Hindu Jagaran Vedike and the Bharatiya Janata Party were suspected to be behind the violence, apparently aimed at pressuring the state government to cancel the programme.

The soft targets of the protesters were the BMTC and the KSRTC buses. Buses were stoned, their tyres deflated and set on fire. Apart from around 50 private vehicles, about 200 BMTC buses, 25 buses on contract and several KSRTC buses were damaged in stone-throwing by the protesters. Intimidated by them, a group of drivers and conductors staged a dharna at Puttenahalli bus depot in Yelahanka refusing to resume work. However, the BMTC officials persuaded them to continue their work.

The areas where buses were damaged in stone-throwing included Rajajinagar, Devaiah Park, Malleswaram, Vijayanagar, Chandra Layout, Jnana Bharathi, Mysore Road, Kengeri, K R Puram, Ramamurthynagar, Ulsoor, Nagavara Ring Road, Banashankari, Mangammanapalya and Peenya.

Police said the protesters stopped buses near road humps, forced passengers to alight from the vehicles and then threw stones at them. The protestors assaulted five drivers when they did not budge. In City Market, Chandra Layout’s Attiguppe area and Gangammanagudi’s Abbigere, miscreants tried to set fire to BMTC buses.

After KSRTC buses on Kanakapura Road were targeted the authorities suspended services on the Bangalore-Kanakapura Road. The protesters deflated tyres of BMTC buses at Devaiah Park, Rajajinagar and other parts of the City. In Rajagopalnagar, they stopped about 20 trucks and deflated their tyres, police said. At Bommasandra in Hebbagodi police limits a private jeep was set on fire.

Senior BJP leaders including Ananthkumar, Jagadish Shettar and Yediyurappa were arrested when they staged a rasta-roko on the MG Road in protest against the Benny Hinn programme.