A poster showing Ramdev's close aide Balakrishna alongside Mahatma Gandhi and other freedom fighters at his protest venue today triggered a controversy following which the yoga guru expressed regret.

The poster, which ran into trouble had Balakrishna's image along with that of Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, Subhash Chandra Bose and other freedom fighters. As soon as TV channels ran a news story about the controversial posters, the organisers suddenly removed it from the protest venue at Ramlila Maidan.

The removal of posters came before Ramdev arrived at the dais. "We regret this. I urge activists not to carry such posters. Attention should not be diverted from the core issue," Ramdev said. Balakrishna is in CBI custody in connection with a fake document case.