Ban on organised Vinayaka rallies

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, AUG. 20. The city police have withdrawn permission for all organised Vinayaka Chaturthi processions in anticipation of violence. The police were forced to take this decision to maintain law and order, the city Police Commissioner, Mr. K. Muthukaruppan, told mediapersons today.

However, the ban is only on organised processions. Individual idols will be allowed to be taken out and immersed at the Marina and also the nearest water source. The police will allow idols of upto 15 feet to be installed at various places.

The police had given permission to four organisations to take out processions including the Hindu Munnani led by Mr.Raama Gopalan, and Shiv Sena (Radhakrishnan group). The processions were scheduled for August 25, 26, 31 and September 2.

Mr. Muthukaruppan said the police had received intelligence reports of possible violence during the rallies. There was a specific information that ``some groups were planning to deviate from authorised routes and create problems. This could endanger lives and also lead to destruction of public and private properties''.

Tracing the history of procession violence, the Commissioner said that one person was killed and 12 were injured in 1990. A Milad- un-Nabi procession turned violent in 1992. A bomb blast in the RSS office at Chetput claimed 11 lives in 1993. The police and the processionists clashed during a Milad-un-Nabi rally in 1994. A blast in the Hindu Munnani office killed one person in 1995. A church was damaged during a Vinayaka procession in 1995. Idols had to be removed after the rally organisers and the police had a problem over the route in 1996. The processionists clashed with the police in 1999.

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Section  : Southern States
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