Bangalore: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha L K Advani and more than 1,250 BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) workers courted arrest in Bangalore today (Sep 1, 2004), as the party kicked-off a "Satyagraha" to press for the unconditional withdrawal of cases against their fire-brand leader Uma Bharti.

After Advani wound up his speech to "Satyagrahis", he courted arrest as police came on the stage and led him away into a police bus, as enthusiastic party workers raised slogans against the Karnataka Government and demanded Bharti's release. Along with him, some 1,250 BJP workers, including more than 20 MPs and 90 legislators from Gujarat, a number of MPs, MLAs and MLCs from Karnataka, also courted arrest. Police Commissioner S Mariswamy said the agitationists were taken into "preventive custody". Advani said the cases against Bharti, who is presently imprisoned in Dharwad after being remanded to judicial custody by a Hubli Court for 14 days in connection with a 10-year criminal case, is false and accused Chief Minister N Dharam Singh of acting under "instructions from New Delhi".

In his speech after he launched the Satyagraha by waving the national tricolour given by party president M Venkaiah Naidu, he said it was inspired by nationalism and BJP workers from all over the county would participate in the week-long agitation.

He described as "nothing but lies" Singh's statement that the matter is between the Court and Bharti.

Advani said the Satyagraha's objective is also against "pseudo-secularism" and to highlight the need for purity and honesty in public life.