In protests that took an ugly turn, Bajrang Dal workers on Monday vandalised two cinema halls in Ahmedabad's Ashram Road area to voice flak against actor Aamir Khan's movie PK that allegedly hurt Hindu sentiments. They also demanded a ban on the film.
The film, directed by director Rajkumar Hirani of Munnabhai MBBS fame, is a satirical take on godmen and superstitions, especially pertaining to Hindu religion.
Sources said that about 20 workers of the right-wing organisation, including Ahmedabad city unit chief Jwalit Mehta, attacked City Gold and Shiv Cinema on the busy Ashram Road on Monday morning and vandalised ticket windows and tore off film posters.
As soon as police came to know about the alleged incident, cops rushed to Ashram Road from the nearby Navrangpura police station, including Deputy Police Commissioner Virendra Singh Yadav. However, by that time Bajarang Dal workers had left.
Confirming the incident, DCP Yadav said that miscreants vandalised ticket windows of both the theatres where screening of PK was going on. "Police are in the process of collecting CCTV footages to identify the party goons," he added.
On the other hand, city unit of Bajarang Dal took the ownership of the incident and warned the multiplexes and cinema halls in Ahmedabad to avoid screening the movie playing with the sentiments of Hindu religion. "We intend to warn other theatre owners so that they stop screening of the movie. Our workers are planning to intensify agitation if theater owners continue screening," said Mehta, adding that Aamir Khan had "hurt the religious sentiments" of Hindus by making fun of Hindu gods and devotees in the film.
"Why the movie did not showcase anything about his own religion (Muslim)IJ" Bajarag Dal had called theatre owners on Sunday and had asked them to stop screening the film but they were reluctant to do so.