Hire fire

Burning tyres, smashed buses and shop windows are fairly standard images of a political bandh or protest in India. But usually, the smashed equipment belongs to innocent citizens or the government. Raj Thackerays Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) set a whole new standard in protest vandalism. In its recent clash with the Nationalist Congress Party, MNS members coughed up around Rs 35,000 to buy a car from a scrap yard, only to set fire to it to demonstrate their protest.