Rahul Gandhi and several other Congress MPs are expected to visit violence-hit Sambhal on Wednesday and are likely to meet the families of those killed in the riots. Newly-elected Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is also expected to accompany the delegation.
Speaking to news agency PTI, the party’s state unit chief Ajay Rai said the party’s general secretary and UP in-charge Avinash Pande will also be present with the MPs.
This comes despite a stern warning by the Sambhal Superintendent of Police who confirmed that curbs under Section 163 (power to issue an order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) has been extended in the city until December 31, allowing no outsiders to enter.
“Section 163 of the BNSS is already imposed in Sambhal. No outsider is allowed (to enter Sambhal). If they come, they will be served a notice,” Sambhal SP Krishan Kumar told PTI, on being asked about Rahul Gandhi’s visit.
SAMBHAL DM ASKS NOIDA, GHAZIABAD COPS TO STOP RAHUL GANDHI
On December 3, Sambhal District Magistrate Rajendra Pensia wrote a letter to the police commissioners of Gautam Buddh Nagar and Ghaziabad and the superintendents of police of Amroha and Bulandshahr districts, urging them to stop Rahul Gandhi at the borders of their districts.
Visuals shared by news agency ANI showed heavy security at the Ghazipur border.
Sambhal has been in the eye of the storm since November 19, when a Mughal-era mosque was surveyed on court orders following claims that a Harihar temple previously stood at the site.
CONGRESS REACTS
On the Sambhal DM’s missive, UP Congress chief Rai termed it as a “murder of the democracy through blatant misuse of police”.
Meanwhile, UP Congress general secretary Sachin Chaudhary told PTI in Sambhal, “National secretary Pradeep Narwal, state vice-president Rizwan Qureshi and I met the family members of deceased Bilal and Noman, and helped them talk to Priyanka Gandhi ji. Priyanka ji enquired about their wellbeing.”
Chaudhary also said that Rahul Gandhi will come to Sambhal on Wednesday and there is a programme to meet the family members of the deceased.
On December 2, scores of Congress workers jostled with police personnel and tried to scale barricades outside the party office in Lucknow as a party delegation led by Rai was prevented from leaving for Sambhal, which had been made out of bounds by the administration after the November 24 violence.
Amid high drama, Rai, who took the driver’s seat in his car with senior party leader PL Punia next to him, could not leave for the “fact-finding” visit even as scuffles broke out between the police and the slogan-shouting party workers, who tried to clear the way for their leaders.
Rai drove the car to some distance inside the Congress office complex but it was stopped by the police at the gate. After this, he sat on a dharna outside the party office along with Congress workers, Punia had said.
The Congress slammed the BJP government, saying it was trying to hide its failure with its “anti-democratic” actions. Rai, who had spent the night at the Congress office with several party workers, later said the party delegation will visit Sambhal when prohibitory orders are lifted.
The BJP hit back with deputy chief ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak accusing Congress and Samajwadi Party leaders of going to Sambhal for “political tourism”. They alleged that the opposition wanted to spoil the “peaceful” atmosphere in the district.
WHAT HAPPENED IN SAMBHAL?
Violence erupted during a second survey on November 24 as protesters gathered near Shahi Jama Masjid and clashed with security personnel. The first round of survey was conducted on November 19 on the court orders following a petition which claimed once a Harihar temple stood at the site.
Five people died and several others were injured in the violence that ensued.
Officials told PTI that a total of 29 policemen were injured in the incident.
Meanwhile, a forensic team investigating the Sambhal violence site on December 3 recovered six empty cartridges which were made in Pakistan. Besides, the team also found one empty cartridge which had ‘made in USA’ written on it.
Article source: news18.com
