Lucknow: Hundreds of Congress workers, including 15 women, were arrested while trying to attempt self-immolation in a bid to persuade All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Sonia Gandhi to take up Prime Ministership, even as protest 'dharnas' and disruption of movement of trains by the workers continued in Rae Bareli and Amethi for several hours.

Hundreds of congress workers, including 15 women, were arrested while trying to self-immolate themselves near Assi, Loharabir and Mahdagin areas of Varanasi this morning (May 19, 2004), police said.

They were overpowered just as they were trying to set themselves afire by sprinkling diesel and kerosene, police added.

Police lathi charged party workers staging a protest in ITI campus in Rae Bareli and two persons suffered minor injuries, official sources said.

Unconfirmed reports said police fired one round to quell the situation but senior police officials denied opening fire.

Congress workers also stopped passenger trains and squatted on the tracks. In Amethi, party workers stopped the Neelanchal Express and Punjab Express trains and raised slogans anti-BJP slogans.

Protest 'dharnas' were on before the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Varanasi.

A congress worker climbed atop a water tank in the diesel locomotive workshop (DLW) compound and threatened to commit suicide if any other Congress leader was made the Prime Minister, police sources said.