Patidar reservation leader, Hardik Patel was detained on Sunday afternoon in Rajkot as he headed to the One Day International (ODI) cricket match between South Africa and India to stage protest for reservation.

Patel along with four of his close aide, was detained by Rajkot police while they were on their way towards the stadium disguised as turban-clad villagers just after the toss at the Khandhari stadium on the outskirts of Rajkot.

The Patidar reservation supporters had vowed to stage protest during the third ODI of the Gandhi-Mandela Freedom Series at the Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) stadium pressing for their demand for reservation under the Other Backward Class (OBC) quota.

The mobile internet and SMS services were put under suspension since Saturday night till Monday morning. Tension mounted further on Sunday as the face of the reservation agitation Hardik Patel headed to the stadium despite prohibitory orders by the authorities.

"The Police have detained Hardik Patel and few of his supporters as a precautionary measure to avoid trouble. We have moved them to SRP post in Rajkot and they will be kept under detention till the match is on," said a senior Rajkot police official. Additional police forces were brought-in from Ahmedabad with senior Intelligence Bureau officers were posted inside the stadium during the match to keep a close vigil on the movement.

The area surrounding the SCA stadium was turned into a fortress with heavy deployment of police and para-military forces including State Reserve Police. Section 144 of the IPC was imposed around the stadium prohibiting assembly of 4 or more people to avoid any untoward incident from happening.

Before heading to the stadium, Hardik Patel had told the media persons, "We have bought the tickets. We will go there (stadium) and let the world know about our issues. They should allow us to go to the match. If they do not allow, then we will sit outside the stadium and peacefully continue our protest there."

With his detention, protest started emerging from Patidar dominated areas of Surat, where a group of agitators tried to block the highway near Kamrej outside Surat. Security has been beefed up at sensitive areas across the state following the detention of the Patidar reservation leader.

Last week, Patidar youths had threatened to buy tickets in bulk and use the ODI as platform to raise their voice. They were prepared to wear t-shirts and placards with slogans in support of reservation.

Notably, on August 25, the state had witnessed widespread violence following the detention of Hardik Patel after his Mega rally on GMDC Ground in Ahmedabad. The violence had claimed 10 lives and damage to government properties worth crores.

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