Gurgaon: Miscreants vandalise mall, break bus windows to protest Padmaavat
Rajasthan-based Shri Rajput Karni Sena activists have been protesting against Padmaavat and had threatened violence if the movie was released. They held a bike rally in Gurgaon and burnt the effigy of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the movie’s director.
Unidentified men took to vandalism in different places in Gurgaon on Monday to allegedly protest the release of Deepika Padukone-starrer Hindi film Padmaavat.
Around 15 men broke LCD TVs and glass panes at Raheja Mall in Sohna road and broke the windows of a bus on Sector 37 highway late in the evening.
According to the police, a group of men, with faces covered, reached Raheja mall around 7:30 pm and started destroying things. They damaged four LCD TVs at the box office counter of a multiplex at the mall.
Vijay Shankar Tiwari, a guard at the mall, said there were about 15 men who were shouting slogans against Padmaavat and vandalising the mall.
No one was injured, although people were present at the time of the incident.
Krishan Kumar, manager of Raheja mall, Sohna Road, said, “A group of people came with lathis and destroyed four TV screens at the movie ticket counter. Glass panes of two showrooms of burger and pizza joint were also broken.”
Police said it was not possible to confirm that the men were activists of Karni Sena, “as no eye witness have substantiated anything related to protest against the upcoming movie”.
“By the time we reached the spot after getting information the miscreants had already fled from the spot,” said Vijay Kumar, station house officer, Sadar police station.
A similar incident took place at Narsinghpur area, Sector 37, at 8:15 pm where a group of 15 men blocked the highway by setting fire to a tyre and breaking two windows of a bus.
“No one has identified the miscreants so far. We are investigating the matter,” said Amit Kumar, Sector 37 station house officer.
To avoid any kind of untoward incident, police will be deployed outside all malls and multiplexes, commissioner of police Sandeep Khirwar said.
“Duties of three magistrates have been assigned for maintaining law and order situation and control any violence,” Khirwar added.
Though the men were suspected to be Karni Sena activists, the organisation denied their role in the act.
Kushal Pal Singh, vice president of Shri Rajput Karni Sena Haryana, said, “We have nothing to do with the incident and it must be handiwork of some miscreants. We are protesting against the movie in peaceful manner.”
Rajasthan-based Shri Rajput Karni Sena activists have been protesting against the movie and had threatened violence if the movie was released. They held a bike rally in Gurgaon and burnt the effigy of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the movie’s director.
