Bhubaneswar, March 19 (IANS) Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) international general secretary Praveen Togadia was Friday stopped by police on his way to Kandhamal district in Orissa.

He was stopped at Charichhak on the border of Boudh and Kandhamal district. He was trying to head to Kandhamal district despite a ban imposed by the district administration on his entry, officials said.

Later, he along with his supporters squatted on the road protesting against the police move saying 'Why can't he be allowed to enter Kandhamal when an European delegation was allowed to visit the district.'

The district administration had banned Togadia's entry in the district fearing that his visit may disturb peace in the region, where at least 38 people were killed over months of communal violence following the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, a Hindu monk, on Aug 23, 2008.