Mumbai: The team bus of Delhi Capitals was vandalized by miscreants in Mumbai and the horrendous incident occurred outside the Taj Palace Hotel which is located in the Colaba area.
Activists belonging to Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) created havoc by smashing the windows of at least one of the luxury buses. A police team was immediately rushed to the site after the incident erupted and five persons were arrested in connection with the incident.
The incident unravelled when around half-a-dozen activists of the MNS - Vahatuk Sena (Transport Wing) sneaked near the bus, pasted posters of their demands on the front side of the bus, chanted slogans and started smashing the windows.
Five senior MNS-VS leaders including Prashant Gandhi, Santosh Jadhav, Bharmu Nandurkar have been arrested by the police and they will have to appear before a Magistrate court later on March 16.
Sanjay Naik, the President of MNS-VS, said that they were staging the protest as buses from outside the state were hired for the purpose of IPL tourney and he added that it leads to the deprivation of employment opportunities for locals.
"Despite our protests, they have allowed several buses and other smaller vehicles here from Delhi and other parts, which is affecting the livelihood of the local Marathi people," Naik told IANS.
The police have taken serious cognizance of the incident and have beefed up security around the Taj Palace Hotel.
A case has been registered under sections 143, 147, 149, 427 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in connection with the incident, the Mumbai Police informed.
The members of Rishabh Pant led Delhi Capitals have arrived in Mumbai to begin their preparations for the upcoming edition of the IPL, which commences on March 26.
Delhi Capitals will lock horns against five-time champions Mumbai Indians in their opening game of the tournament on March 27 at Brabourne Stadium.
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