Congress workers torched six buses and a police jeep at Hulkoti, approximately 10 km from Mangalore on Friday, in protest against a garland of slippers being placed on the statue of a late veteran party state leader, allegedly by Sri Ram Sene activists.
The Sene activists were suspected to have carried out the act to give vent to their anger against blackening of the face of their leader Pramod Muthalik and an attempt to assault him, allegedly by Youth Congress workers in Bengaluru. The police also resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the Congress workers, who were agitated over the slipper garland being placed on the statue of K H Patil on Friday night.
Four Congress workers have been arrested and 20 Sri Rama Sene's activists taken into preventive custody, said the police. Prohibitory orders have been clamped till 6 pm of February 14 as a precautionary measure.
Meanwhile, the bandh call given by Sri Rama Sene activists in Mangalore was a 'total failure' with life proceeding normally, barring some stray stone-pelting incidents by them, Superintendent of Police Subramanyeshwara Rao said.
"Eleven Sri Rama Sene activists have been arrested and 24 taken into preventive custody in this connection," he said.
