The Mangaluru Police in Karnataka on Sunday booked six workers of Hindutva organisation Bajrang Dal on charges of vandalising the venue of an event held in the city to celebrate Holi, The Hindu reported.
The workers barged into the event called Rang De Barsa and damaged posters that had been put up outside the venue at Maroli.
Members of the Hindutva organisation opposed girls and boys smearing each other with colours, saying they were behaving indecently, PTI reported. They also alleged that the Hindu festival was being celebrated by youths from other religions as well.
The Bajrang Dal members later had an altercation with the organiser of the event. “We have told you to stop the programme in nice words,” one of them can be heard saying in a viral video. “But you are not listening. Do not bring names of Member of Parliament and MLAs here. We will take action to stop the programme.”
The police soon arrived at the venue and took the six Bajrang Dal workers into custody.
City Police Commissioner Kuldeep Kumar R Jain told The Hindu that the event organisers had taken permission for the Holi party. “If anybody is opposed to the event, a complaint should have been filed with the police,” he added. “Instead, the group took law into their hands.”
The police have filed a case based on a complaint by the organiser.
The development came days after a group of men from the Bajrang Dal stopped a “ladies night” event in Karnataka’s Shivamogga on March 18, alleging that it was against the Hindu culture.
“We will not allow such events in Shivamogga because we do not want our city to become another Manipal,” Rajesh Gowda, the district convener of the Bajrang Dal, had told reporters.
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