Goa Congress leaders headed for venue of Amit Shah’s public meeting detained

Goa Congress president Amit Patkar and some other leaders of the party were detained on their way to protest at the venue of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s public meeting in south Goa on April 16.

Goa Congress president Amit Patkar and some other leaders of the party were detained on their way to protest at the venue of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's public meeting in south Goa on April 16, a police official said.

The official said Congress leaders were detained as a preventive measure.

Mr. Patkar said Congress workers were detained at Banastarim bridge, almost 10 km away from the Farmagudi ground near Ponda town, where Mr. Shah is scheduled to address a public meeting later in the evening.

"Congress leaders were on their way to Mr. Shah's rally. We wanted to seek clarification from Mr. Shah about his statement on the diversion of Mahadayi river water by Karnataka,” he said.

Mr. Patkar claimed Mr. Shah had told a public meeting in Karnataka that the water of the Mahadayi river would be diverted for which the Goa Government has given its consent.

“Mr. Shah may be a BJP leader but he is the Home Minister of the country. We have a right to question him during the public meeting,” he said.