Bengaluru, 4 Mar

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Wednesday said that the police have booked a case against those who took out a protest march in Bengaluru recently, without permission, condemning the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

A large number of Shia Muslims gathered in Richmond Town on 2March to mourn Khamenei's demise and held a protest march.

"A section of the minority community has accepted Khamenei as their religious leader. When he died, naturally they felt the pain and expressed it. But it should have happened within the framework of the law of the land. They had not sought any permission for the procession and no permission was given," Parameshwara said in response to a question.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, "They went ahead with the procession. So, the police have taken action by registering cases against them. In the days ahead, we will not let them hold any processions. As there are court orders not to permit any procession in the city, it can be done at Freedom Park if needed. The government is strictly abiding by the court orders."

Responding to a question about a Congress legislator alsobeing part of the protest march, the home minister merely said, "We will strictly follow the rules."

Khamenei was killed in an airstrike in Tehran on Saturday during a joint Israel-US attack on Iran.