The Friday prayers at several prominent mosques in Uttar Pradesh were followed by loud protests against United States President George W Bush for invading Iraq.

In Lucknow, nearly 5,000 Muslims gathered outside the historic 18th century Imambara and marched in a procession to Hussainabad, raising anti-Bush and anti-US slogans. They subjected an effigy of the American president to repeated thrashing and finally set it ablaze amidst wild cheering.

The gathering was addressed by both Shia and Sunni clerics. Not only did they flay the US and its "imperialist" policies, they also trained their guns on other Muslim countries in the Gulf region, particularly Saudi Arabia, whose leaders they labelled American stooges.

Similar protests were reported from Kanpur where local Muslims threatened to intensify their agitation. In Faizabad, a maulana called on all Indian Muslims to organise a protest demonstration before the American embassy in New Delhi. Muslims in Allahabad prayed for the safety and security of the Iraqi people, and condemned the US for "unleashing terror" through the "brutal killing of innocent Iraqi civilians".

Maulana Fazlur Rehman, imam of Lucknow's Telewali Masjid, expressed dissatisfaction over the 'mild' manner in which Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had expressed India's protest against the invasion. "Vajpayee should have condemned the US role rather than just beating about the bush," he said.

Rehman warned, "If Bush is allowed to have his way in this arbitrary fashion, it would be no surprise if tomorrow he comes and tell the Indian prime minister to abdicate power and allow the US to install their nominee."