Hindu radicals fume over underwear of the gods

AHMEDABAD, India (AFP) - A hawkish Hindu group demanded action after cheeky women's underwear sporting images of gods and goddesses was spotted in a flea market in the volatile western state of Gujarat.

The underwear made in the United States was being sold along with a heap of lingerie in the Gujarat town of Godhra, which in 2002 witnessed a train attack that set off bloody religious riots.

"We have asked the administration to look into how this printed panty depicting our Hindu deities landed here in the first place," said Rakesh Thakore, local chief of the hardline Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council).

"If the police do not do something by this (Friday) evening, we will take up this case in court. It is a very sensitive matter for us. We cannot let anybody insult our gods," he said.

More than 2,000 people were killed in anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat which broke out after an allegedly Muslim mob torched a train in Godhra carrying Hindu activists, killing 59 people.