Karnataka: Eight arrested for opposing R-Day rally in front of mosque in Haveri

HAVERI: The Haveri police have registered a case against eight persons for allegedly opposing school children who were taking out a rally on Republic Day in Haveri on Saturday.

The case against eight persons was booked on Saturday night under the section IPC 341 and they were released on bail.

The incident was reported in Hirur village of Hangal taluk of Haveri when the students of Government Primary School were taking out a march on the road where a mosque is located. The police have now deployed additional forces at the village which has a history of communal clashes in the past.

Police said, the arrested persons came out of the mosque and demanded that the students stop the band as it was against the law of the village. The group tried to snatch the band equipment and entered into a verbal duel with the school authorities despite the latter's explanation that the rally is of a school and not by any religious group.

"It's a public road where the mosque is located and anyone can take out a rally from there. The villages cannot have their own rule and no band zone in front of any religious institutions. Acting upon the complaint lodged by an organisation in Haveri we arrested eight persons on Saturday night," said a police officer.