Bollywood couple Ranbir-Alia stopped from offering prayers at Ujjain temple

Bhopal, Sep 7 (IANS) Bollywood couple Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt were stopped from offering prayers at the Shree Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain due to a protest by Bajrang Dal activists.According to the police, the couple was supposed to offer prayers on Tuesday for which the temple committee along with the district administration and the police had made elaborate security arrangements.However, the Bajrang Dal activists opposed the actors' entry based on an alleged remark made by Ranbir Kapoor in 2011 over the beef issue. A video of the incident right-wing activists protesting surfaced on social media on Wednesday."Due to security concerns, the couple returned from Ujjain to Indore without offering prayers at temple in the wake of the protests. However, other members of 'Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva' film crew later offered prayers at the temple," said a police official in Ujjain.Meanwhile, the police detained one of the protesters after he got into a physical altercation with an officer on duty."We won't allow Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt into the temple over the liking for beef remark. We'll protest in big manner against local administration and police over the assault on our worker," Bajrang Dal leader Ankit Chaube had said.As per informed sources, Ranbir and Alia stayed at Ujjain district collector Ashish Singh's official residence before returning to Indore. They added that the collector is a friend of Ayan Mukerji, the film's directorThe director said it felt great after offering prayers at the temple ahead of the film's release but refrained from saying anything about the protests.
--IANS pd/ksk/

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