Italian police arrested two dozen separatists including a former parliamentarian on Wednesday on suspicion of gathering arms to violently split the wealthy northern region of Veneto from the rest of Italy.

The "referendum" was an online poll that said 89 percent of respondents voted for Veneto to break away from Italy.

The Northern League, which has long campaigned for the autonomy of Italy's rich northern regions, said it would rally in the northern city of Verona on Sunday to protest against the arrests and the softening of the immigration law.

Rocchetta was a founding member of the League, which has 4 percent of the seats in parliament, but has since left it.

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