Padmaavat: Rajput Karni Sena blocks highway connecting to Chittorgarh in protest of film's release

Jaipur/Chittorgarh: Shri Rajput Karni Sena members on 17 January blocked the highway connecting Udaipur, Kota and Bhilwara with Chittorgarh to protest against the proposed screening of controversial movie Padmaavat from 25 January. [caption id=“attachment_4223299” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Deepika Padukone in a still from Padmavati.[/caption] According to information received at the state capital, the highway stretch near Rithala Square in Chittorgarh is extremely crowded. Around 200 police personnel have been deputed in and around Chittorgarh to avert any untoward incident. On Saturday, Shri Rajput Karni Sena spokesperson Virendra Singh had announced that they would be blocking the National Highways and rail tracks across Chittorgarh on 17 January. The administration has directed officials to divert the traffic at Rithala Square through alternate routes. Speaking to IANS on Wednesday, the Karni Sena spokesperson said: “We will continue our protest… We are around 2,000 in number now and we are sure that this number will go up by this evening.” Incidents of tyres being burnt on the highway have also been reported from Chittorgarh. The screening of Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial Padmaavat has been banned in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. Haryana also joined the list on Tuesday.