New Delhi: Over 700 Hindu religious leaders from across the country will hit the capital's streets tomorrow (Nov 21, 2004) protesting the arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya even as the powerful 'Akhara Parishad' today (Nov 20, 2004) decided to back VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad)'s 'Bharat Bandh' on November 22.

The religious leaders, who arrived in New Delhi from Haridwar, Ayodhya, Vrindavan, Jaipur and Delhi, will march from Ramlila Maidan to the famous Gauri Shankar temple at Chandni Chowk passing through communally sensitive areas of Ajmeri Gate, Asaf Ali Road and Nai Sarak.

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The 'Rosh Yatra' (Anger March) will conclude with a public meeting at Chandni Chowk which is likely to be addressed among others by VHP supremo Ashok Singhal and its senior vice-president Acharya Giriraj Kishore.

The protest will be led among others by Paramanand Saraswati of Juna Akhara and former MP Ramvilas Vedanti.

Meanwhile, in a significant development, the Akhara Parishad, an influential body of Hindu religious leaders headed by Mahant Gyan Das, who is considered an opponent of VHP, today decided to support the Sangh Parivar outfit's bandh call against the Pontiff's arrest.

At a meeting at Kalka temple in South Delhi, the Parishad also decided to mobilise mass support for the VHP programme.

About 18 of the Hindu religious leaders would also be meeting President A P J Abdul Kalam on Monday afternoon.

VHP has also sent its firebrand leader Praveen Togadia to Kolkata to mobilise support for its bandh call.