Karkala: Karkala police have arrested two individuals for putting up a defamatory banner against Muslims at Murathangady near Sanoor on Tuesday.

The accused are identified as Satish Devadiga, a local who had put up the banner, and Pushpalatha, the owner of 'Amulya Graphics' at Market Road, Karkala where the banner was printed. Karkala police who investigated the matter arrested the accused and presented them before the Karkala court. Releasing the printing press owner Pushpalatha on conditional bail, the court handed over Sathish to judicial custody.

The controversial banner had appeared at Kamalaksha Nagara near Murathangady on Monday. It used abusive language against the local Muslim community and warned them not to 'lay hands on Hindu girls'. Accused Satish had printed his name and photo in the banner, calling himself 'one of the freedom fighter'. Locals say that the accused is a 50-year old daily wager who was suffering from mental illness from last 5-6 years.

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Accused Sathish was currently residing with his younger brothers, as his wife and children had abandoned him. Few residents alleged that as he was mentally unstable, certain anti-social elements could have used his name to publish the banner so as to cause unrest in the society. Kamalaksha Nagara is a place of communal harmony and such attempts to instigate communal discord must be nipped in the bud, the locals demanded.

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Kolkata (PTI): Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee cut short her speech at a rally in her Bhabanipur constituency, alleging that the BJP was deliberately playing loud music from a nearby public meeting.

A peeved Banerjee said despite having the required permission of the Election Commission, her rally in Chakraberia was disrupted by the BJP, "who want to capture Bengal by intimidation and threat".

"It is not possible for me to go ahead with this meeting. If they can do such a thing in my constituency, imagine how undemocratic the BJP is. If they behave like this, I have to take legal action," she said.

"This is an insult, humiliation. BJP is stepping on our toes to instigate trouble. Not possible to address the gathering in this situation. I am leaving the stage. Please vote for me in your protest," she added.

Banerjee was then seen calling someone over and venting her grievances.

Before leaving the stage, she said, "I will hold a rally tomorrow at the same spot."

TMC supporters then rushed towards the BJP rally, which was later addressed by Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, but security personnel intervened and prevented the situation from escalating.

TMC workers later staged a demonstration outside the local police station and filed a complaint, alleging that the BJP violated the model code of conduct.

A senior TMC leader said another complaint will also be lodged with the Election Commission.

Asked about Banerjee's allegations, Adhikari told reporters after the rally he held nearby, "Her reaction shows she is nervous about the imminent loss."

"There was no violence, no obstruction in her meeting and her behaviour shows her nervousness. On May 4, people of Bhabanipur will celebrate the victory of the BJP," he claimed, alleging that the TMC also tried to disrupt his meeting by playing loud music.

South Kolkata's Bhabanipur, one of the battleground seats in the West Bengal elections, will vote in the second phase on April 29.