Bangalore, Karnataka Bajrang Dal convener Mahendra Kumar has been detained by police in the coastal city of Mangalore in connection with Sunday's attack on Christian places of worship in several parts of the state.

Kumar was detained late Friday on charges of criminal conspiracy and promoting enmity between different religious groups, police said.

Kumar's arrest was demanded by members of the National Commission for Minorities who visited Mangalore Wednesday to assess the situation following Sunday's attack on churches and prayer halls there and violence the next day during protests by Christians.

Kumar, as well as the state's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, had denied that Bajrang Dal was involved in the attack.

However, NCM members as well as several Congress leaders maintained that they had seen Kumar on TV channels saying Bajrang Dal had staged the attack and wanted him to be arrested.

The late night arrest followed NCM members repeating their demand on return to New Delhi Friday and central government's advisory to the state under Article 355 of the constitution to ensure safety of minorities, their places of worship and property.

A number of churches, prayer halls and Christian religious symbols were damaged in Sunday's attack in Mangalore, headquarters of Dakshina Kannada district and in Udupi and Chikmagalur districts.

The Karnataka government on Friday night announced the setting up of an enquiry commission headed by B.K. Somashekara, former judge of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh high courts, to probe the attacks and the subsequent violence.

Hindu groups as well as the Karnataka government say the attacks were the fallout of some Christian groups indulging in conversion activity and distributing literature offensive to Hindu faithfuls.

The government had, however, condemned the attacks and told the Hindu groups not to take law into their hands but inform the government if they come across any conversion activity in the state.

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