Congress Workers Clash With UP Police After Ajay Rai Stopped from Visiting Sambhal Amid High Drama

Lucknow: A scuffle broke out between Congress workers and the Uttar Pradesh Police on Monday when state Congress president Ajay Rai was stopped from visiting violence-hit Sambhal district. Rai, along with party workers, staged a sit-in protest outside the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) office, insisting on to visit the Sambhal.

Police Restrict Congress Leaders  

The Uttar Pradesh Police issued a notice to Rai, advising him to postpone his visit to Sambhal. The notice referred to an order from the district magistrate under Section 163 BNSS, which restricts entry to the area until December 10 to maintain public order. 

In the notice given to Ajay Rai, he has been informed that "keeping in mind the peace and communal sensitivity in Sambhal district, he should cooperate in the public interest and postpone his proposed program so that the order passed by the District Magistrate of Sambhal district, Section 163 BNSS is not violated."

Barricades were also placed outside the Congress office and at the house of leaders who planned to go with Rai. Despite this, Rai and his supporters tried to leave, which led to the fight between Police and Cong workers.

Rai questioned the government’s decision to extend the restrictions. Speaking to a news agency, Congress state president said that the government extended the ban to hide its mistakes. "We planned to visit on December 2 because the ban was to end on November 30. Now it is extended without any reason," he said. 

Congress leader Sachin Chaudhary alleged that the Uttar Pradesh Police is preventing a delegation of the party from going to Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh and demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the matter.

"Police are stopping us (from going to Sambhal). Earlier, they gave us the time for December 2. I just want to ask that if we cannot ask about the well-being of the victims, isn't it a matter of shame? We demand a CBI inquiry into the matter. Police have been there at my residence since morning," Chaudhary told news agency ANI.

Violence in Sambhal  

Violence broke out in Sambhal on November 24. It happened during a court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. The survey was based on a claim that a Harihar temple once stood at the mosque’s site. Four people died, and many were injured in the clashes.  

Congress is demanding answers about the situation in Sambhal. The government says the restrictions are needed to keep peace.

(Inputs from News Agencies)