Varanasi, Sept.23 (ANI): Varanasi Police on Wednesday baton charged the pilgrims when they were trying to immerse Ganesha idols in the river Ganga.

Earlier in 2013, the Allahabad High Court had ordered a complete ban on immersion of idols in Ganga and Yamuna to keep a check on the increasing pollution in the rivers.

In the past three years, the High Court several times ordered a ban on immersion of idols in Ganga.

However, it had relaxed the norms on the insistence of district authorities as changes in immersion routes could lead to law and order unrest. (ANI)