Coimbatore: Sixty eight BJP workers were today arrested for protesting against Chief Ministers of West Bengal and Kerala, who arrived here to attend CPI-M's 19th All India congress.

The activists tried to stage a black flag demonstration in protest against "entry of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and V S Achuthanandan to this city". The workers held aloft placards in Tamil, Hindi and English, describing Buddhadeb as a "murderer in Nandigram" and Achuthanandan as "killer in Kannur in Kerala".

Though the BJP had decided to organise a peaceful demonstration at the allotted place near Red Cross building, a few Yuva Morcha activists marched towards the venue, carrying blackflags and shouting slogans against both Chief Ministers, following which they were arrested. Senior BJP leaders, including S R Segar, Tamil Nadu Party observer, also raised slogans, police sources said.

Slogans were also raised against Achuthanandan, asking him to go back as he "has no business to come to Tamil Nadu for his failure to find a solution to the Mullaperiyar Dam issue", they said.

Source : PTI