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Mann held for threatening to block Advani's yatra

By Our Staff Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, MARCH 24. The Punjab police today arrested the president of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar), Simranjit Singh Mann, as he had threatened to block the Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani's Bharat Uday Yatra, which enters the State tomorrow.

According to reports, Mr. Mann, along with a dozen of his supporters, was arrested in Sangrur. He was addressing reporters when he was taken into custody. His party spokesman has announced that the plan to block the yatra would not be changed.

Mr. Mann had threatened to block the yatra near Khumanon town of Fatehgarh Sahib district on Thursday. The yatra is scheduled to culminate in a public rally at Amritsar on March 26, where the Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, would receive it.

According to the Punjab police chief, A.A. Siddiqui, Mr. Mann was arrested following directions from the State Government, to prevent any untoward incident during Mr. Advani's journey through Punjab. About 123 activists of Mr. Mann's party were also detained.

Amarinder's assurance

Earlier talking to reporters, the Chief Minister, Amarinder Singh, said that nobody would be allowed to disrupt the yatra, as it was Mr. Advani's legitimate political right.

Claiming that the police had been instructed to provide security to Mr. Advani and his entourage, the Chief Minister admitted that the authorities had advised a change in the yatra route. He said that Mr. Advani had been assured that the yatra would not be disrupted anywhere in the State.

The Chief Minister used the opportunity to ridicule the `India Shining' campaign of the BJP saying that only three faces of the party's leadership were shining. He claimed to have written a letter to the Prime Minister pointing out complete ``misrepresentation of facts'' on various topics, especially the oil refinery project as depicted in the latter's speech at Patiala earlier this month.

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