The members of Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhakam (TPDK) were arrested in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, on Saturday when they staged a black flag demonstration against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over Sri Lankan Tamils' issue, hours before his visit to the city for addressing an election rally.

A total of 91 TPDK workers, including 15 women, assembled near the city bus stand and protested against the failure of the previous Congress-led UPA government to safeguard the Sri Lankan Tamils during the war against Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009, police said.

The party Vice-President is scheduled to address an election rally here along with DMK MP, Kanimozhi, later this evening.

Led by TPDK General Secretary, K Ramakrishnan, the activists raised slogans against Congress, accusing it of having remained a mute spectator, when thousands of Tamils were killed in the guise of eliminating the LTTE.

(Deccan Chronicle)