Hathras to Lakhimpur Kheri to Sambhal: Cases of Oppn leaders stopped by UP police

Last Saturday, 3 Samajwadi Party (SP) parliamentarians, including its Sambhal MP Zia-ur-Rehman Barq, were stopped from entering Sambhal municipality arsenic the territory medication had extended the prohibition connected the introduction of outsiders until December 10 to support “peace and order”.

Past instances

In July 2019, pursuing a firing incidental connected tribals successful Sonbhadra, Priyanka was to sojourn the families of those killed. However, she was detained astatine the Chunar impermanent location successful Mirzapur arsenic she was connected her way. A period later, she met the families of the victims and vowed to basal with them till they get backmost the onshore implicit which the clash took place. Violence had erupted successful Sonbhadra pursuing a quality implicit a land.

Rahul and Priyanka were besides detained successful October 2020 successful the afternath of the Hathras gangrape. Their cavalcade was stopped by the UP constabulary astatine the Yamuna Expressway successful Greater Noida portion en way to Hathras. They continued to marque their mode connected ft but were arrested and released an hr later.

The brother-sister duo were again detained successful October 2021 portion they were connected their mode to conscionable the kin of 4 farmers who died successful Lakhimpur Kheri. Then Union curate Ajay Mishra’s lad Ashish Mishra was arrested successful transportation with the Lakhimpur Kheri violence.

Rahul and Priyanka, however, managed to scope Lakhimpur Kheri precocious astatine nighttime aft precocious voltage-drama was seen implicit their detention.

The past Chhattisgarh main curate Bhupesh Baghel and Punjab lawman CM Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, some from the Congress, were besides stopped past from reaching Lakhimpur Kheri,

In these cases, the constabulary had cited Section 144 — which disallows the assembly of much than 4 oregon much radical successful a circumstantial country successful the cases of “potential danger” oregon “nuisance”.

Around the aforesaid time, SP president Akhilesh Yadav was besides detained by the constabulary successful Lucknow to halt him from visiting Lakhimpur Kheri aft the incident. Heavy constabulary deployment was seen extracurricular the SP chief’s location to halt him from leaving the area.

How Opposition has reacted

As Rahul was stopped astatine the Ghazipur borderline by the constabulary Wednesday, helium insisted that it was “his right” to sojourn Sambhal. With a transcript of the Constitution successful his hand, helium said: “I americium acceptable to spell unsocial to Sambhal with police, but americium not being allowed.”

The UP Congress alleged that the BJP authorities successful the authorities has made “a wont of stopping Opposition leaders from gathering those suffering due to the fact that of the government’s failures”.

UP Congress wide caput Anil Yadav charged that the authorities authorities was stopping leaders due to the fact that it wanted to “hide what really happened successful Sambhal”. “They did the aforesaid successful Lakhimpur Kheri erstwhile Priyanka ji was detained for 20 hours. When she yet reached there, she was told that it was the BJP who was down the violence. It has to beryllium the aforesaid successful Sambhal. This has go a modus operandi of the BJP authorities successful UP. This is unprecedented, and happens obscurity successful a antiauthoritarian acceptable up,” helium alleged.

SP nationalist spokesperson Abdul Hafeez Gandhi besides alleged that the UP authorities has made it a “policy” to halt the Opposition leaders from visiting places aft specified incidents. “This goes against the antiauthoritarian principles wherever the Opposition has a captious role. It has been a portion since the unit successful Sambhal, and the concern seems mean now. Then, wherefore are Opposition leaders being stopped?” helium asked.

The BJP has dismissed these allegations.

“Steps are taken by the section medication to support bid and tranquility successful delicate places similar Sambhal. It has thing to bash with the government. If politicians spell to Sambhal, determination volition beryllium a anticipation of hostility being flared up, and hence, they are being stopped. In a fewer days, specified curbs volition beryllium lifted and past Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi tin bash tourism successful Sambhal,” said BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi.

He added: “We person seen the effect Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rehman Barq’s code had connected the bid and tranquility successful Sambhal. Hence, the section medication is being cautious.”

Unrest broke retired successful Sambhal connected November 24 implicit a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque successful the town. Four radical died successful the violence.