Short, safe: torch relay ends peacefully

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New Delhi: Sportspersons past and present, film stars and other celebrities hastily passed the Beijing Olympic flame from one to another Thursday as the tightly orchestrated India run of the torch got over under a cloud of protests from Tibetans elsewhere in the city.

India's woman weightlifter Kunjum Rani Devi kicked off the relay of the Olympic flame, which arrived here late on Wednesday under a thick security blanket and was kept overnight at the Le Meridien Hotel.

Amongst the others who carried the flame from Raisina Hill, with the presidential palace in the background, to the India Gate monument were former track queen P T Usha, hockey stars Aslam Sher Khan, Zafar Iqbad and Dhanraj Pillai, film stars Saif Ali Khan and Aamir Khan and cricketer Bishen Singh Bedi.

CNN-IBN's Digvijay Singh Deo was the only Indian journalist to carry the torch.

The India Gate lawns were mostly empty, except for officials, sponsors, swarming security personnel and the Olympic Holy Flame Protection Group that formed the inner circle protecting the flame.

For over five hours, the majestic Rajpath was turned into a security fortress with the Prime Minister's office and Ministries of Defence, External Affairs and Finance lining the torch route from Rashtrapati Bhavan shut down.

Tibetans detained

About 50 Tibetan protesters were rounded up while trying to breach the cordon at various places around the India Gate area, which saw three-tier security akin to Republic Day. At Le Meridien Hotel, nine Tibetans including a monk tried entering the premises but were swiftly whisked away by police

Around 30 Tibetan protesters tried to barge into Rashtrapati Bhavan from Gate No. 38 on North Avenue but were taken into custody.

Parallel flame rally

Earlier, shouting "Free Tibet", "Hu Jintao murdabad (down with Hu Jintao)", around 5,000 people, mainly Tibetans, completed their parallel torch rally in New Delhi on Thursday afternoon just before the actual Olympic torch rally begins amid stringent security.

The parallel rally, which began at Rajghat at 11 a.m., concluded its around three-km march at Jantar Mantar in the heart of the capital at around 1335 hrs IST. There were over 3,000 Tibetans in the rally, including around 1,000 monks.

Wearing white or yellow t-shirts and headbands with "Free Tibet" written on it, the rally members also comprised hundreds of people sympathetic to the Tibetan cause, mainly college students.

The torch was first carried by actor-socialite Nafisa Ali. Later, politician Jaya Jaitley and rights activist Swami Agnivesh also carried the torch.

The rallyists carried placards saying "Free Tibet", "Stop Cultural Genocide" and "Support Tibet". Many people had their faces smeared in white paint with the Tibetan emblem or flag painted on it.

A huge tent was set up at Jantar Mantar, where the rally concluded. It looked like a mini-Tibet with monks in their maroon robes and some Tibetans performing dances as people clapped and cheered.

Janata Dal-United leader George Fernandes, addressing the gathering at Jantar Mantar, asked the people to boycott Chinese goods "until the Chinese people give audience to the Dalai Lama and listen to his demands".

Jaya Jaitley said the police had tried to snatch the torch from her thrice. She described the Beijing Olympics torch as a "torch of shame. This is the real torch".

Cricketer Kirti Azad said: "I am not against the Olympics but the Beijing Olympics torch is a flame that is burning with the blood of Tibetans."

Around 60 Tibetans were detained from across Delhi, which is on high alert for the event. The 2.5-km stretch between Rashtrapati Bhawan and India Gate in Delhi was turned into a fortress ahead of the Olympic torch relay.

(With IANS and PTI)