Kanwarias or Shiva devotees here went on a rampage, setting vehicles on fire, after three of them were run over by a bus.
Hanumanganj (Uttar Pradesh), Aug 10 : Kanwarias or Shiva devotees here went on a rampage, setting vehicles on fire, after three of them were run over by a bus.
Irate pilgrims set the bus and police vehicles on fire in Hanumanganj, near Allahabad, the third such incident in the past one week.
Violent protests broke out as the Kanwarias, dressed in traditional saffron-coloured shirts, expressed their rage after a bus ran over a group of them, killing three and injuring six others.
"The Kanwarias set a bus on fire. The driver was injured. Police have taken him away. There was also one woman inside the bus," said Gopinath, an eyewitness.
The injured have been admitted to a hospital.
On Tuesday, Kanwarias had set trucks on fire and blocked Jaipur- Delhi highway after three pilgrims were killed under the wheels of a truck.
The Kanwarias, who worship God Shiva, walk hundreds of miles every year. hey traditionally take the holy water of the Ganga in their decorated 'Kanwars' (earthen pots) to their homes where the pilgrimage culminates with the water being used for anointment ceremony at the local Shiva temples.
The pilgrims are notorious for their temper and are known to turn violent if traffic is not stopped to allow them cross roads, or if a vehicle hits them.
ANI