Major Scuffle At Ghazipur Border After Rahul Stopped From Visiting Sambhal, Commuters Protest

New Delhi: A major traffic disruption unfolded at the Ghazipur border on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway on Wednesday morning as Congress workers gathered defying heavy barricading ahead of Rahul Gandhi 's planned visit to Sambhal. The situation escalated when frustrated commuters, stranded due to the traffic blockade, clashed with Congress workers.  

Commuters expressed their anger by raising slogans against Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. 

Congress' youth wing members waved flags and chanted slogans as authorities halted Rahul Gandhi's convoy at the Ghazipur border, citing prohibitory orders in place due to recent violence in Sambhal. Meanwhile, tensions flared between commuters and Congress supporters, leading to a heated scuffle.  

"We had inputs about the gathering on the highway. We deployed security personnel to prevent any untoward incident," Assistant Commissioner of Police Swatantra Kumar Singh told PTI videos.

Curbs under Section 163 (power to issue an order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which were set to expire on Sunday, have now been extended till December 31 in Sambhal.

Earlier, Ghaziabad Police Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra told PTI, "We will not permit Rahul Gandhi to Sambhal as prohibitory orders have been issued by the administration there. Police will stop Gandhi at UP gate." A senior Delhi Police officer said the force has been deployed at the border to manage traffic, which is being diverted.

Ashish Saxena, a resident of Noida, stuck in the jam for close to half an hour, said, "I was returning from the railway station and found myself in this traffic jam. If I had known about this, I would have taken an alternate route to get home." Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since November 19, when a Mughal-era mosque was surveyed on court orders following claims that a Harihar temple previously stood at the site.

Violence erupted during a second survey on November 24 as protesters gathered near Shahi Jama Masjid and clashed with security personnel. Four people were killed in the violence and many more were injured.