The Left Front -- led by Sitaram Yechuri, A B Bardhan and Abani Roy -- and the Janata Dal (Secular) staged a noisy demonstration in New Delhi on Tuesday against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's ongoing India visit.

Sharon's India Visit: The Complete Coverage

The demonstrators, raising slogans such as 'Killer Sharon Wapis Jao, Vajpayee hosh main aao'  and 'Indo-Palestine Ekta Jindabad', were stopped just 500 metres from Hotel Taj Mansingh, where Sharon is staying.

The protestors later courted arrest.

Addressing the protestors, Bardhan said Sharon is responsible for obstructing the Middle East peace process.

"He is the man who did not allow the implementation of the Oslo accord, under which Israel was to vacate the Palestine land. He is a killer and the government of India has insulted the Indian people by inviting him to visit India.

"The government is advancing the argument that with this friendship with Israel we would be able to fight terrorism. I want to ask the Vajpayee government has Israel managed to stop bloodshed by use of power and force?" Bardhan said.

Yechuri questioned the timing of Sharon's visit to India.

"Isn't it strange that India should have invited him to visit our country on the second anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the USA. We have pawned our foreign policy to suit the needs of the USA government. Israel, of course, is there because the USA is behind it," he said.

Yechuri told rediff.com that the supreme court of Israel had held Sharon guilty of genocide and he was forced to resign as the defence minister of his country following the court verdict.

"Such a man is invited by the government of India and we are holding talks with him to firm our relationship with a country which, with the help of the USA, has been practicing state terrorism. Vajpayee government is worried about the consolidation of Hindu votes and they think that by inching closer to Israel they would be able to win the mandate of the people of India.

"Once this government is thrown out of power, we would have to take corrective measures to restore balance in our foreign policy. In 1946, Gandhiji had said just as Germany belongs to Germans and France to French, Palestine belongs to the people of Palestine. How can we go against the wishes of Gandhiji and support a killer?" he asked.