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Lakhimpur violence: Opposition keeps up heat; case against 11 leaders
On Tuesday, state police prevented Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel from leaving the Lucknow airport, prompting the Congress leader to stage a dharna at the terminal.
The Opposition continued to take potshots at the government on Tuesday over the deaths of eight people in Uttar Pradesh with Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleging she was illegally detained and leaders from the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and Trinamool Congress (TMC) attacking the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Hours after the incident on Sunday, the UP government clamped prohibitory orders, denied orders for flights to land and deployed police to stop Opposition leaders from travelling to Lakhimpur Kheri.
On Tuesday, state police prevented Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel from leaving the Lucknow airport, prompting the Congress leader to stage a dharna at the terminal. Baghel’s flight had been denied permission to land on Monday.
“The truth of Lakhimpur will come to light one day, it cannot be kept hidden forever,” Baghel told reporters at the airport.
Priyanka Gandhi, who was detained on Monday and allegedly roughed up by police, used a 29-second clip showing a car mowing down protesters at Lakhimpur Kheri to target the BJP.
“Modiji Namaskar, have you seen this video that shows son of a minister of your government crushing farmers under his vehicle….Why is this man free?” she asked in a video message filmed at a makeshift detention centre in Sitapur, where she has been since Monday.
The source and the veracity of the video in question need to be ascertained but they are in sync with the version of the protesting farmers, who say that four protesters were knocked down by cars owned by Union minister of state for home, Ajay Mishra Teni. The identity of the individuals in the vehicles is unclear but farmers say that the minister’s son, Ashish Mishra, was in the car and later fired shots.
While the minister’s version is that the vehicles came under attack and lost control, nothing of that sort can be seen in the video. The lead vehicle appears to deliberately run over the farmers — and from behind. To be sure, the video is only 29 seconds long and is only a blurry video shot at the time of the incident.
In all, eight people were killed – four farmers, two BJP workers, a driver and a journalist. Mishra says that protesters lynched the BJP workers and the driver.
Later in the day, Priyanka Gandhi alleged that police used illegal force, didn’t allow her to meet her lawyer and didn’t share a copy of the FIR. “I have not been produced in front of a magistrate or any other judicial officer,” she said in a statement.
The Congress leader said she was “verbally informed” by police officials that she was arrested under section 151 of the CrPC -- on Monday. She also said that she didn’t violate section 144, which bars the assembly or movement of four or more people.
Police in Sitapur said Priyanka Gandhi and 10 others were named in an FIR for attempting to disturb peace, but refuted reports that she was arrested.
“The detention of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is done as precautionary measures under section 144 CrPC as she was adamant on going to Lakhimpur Kheri. He said the visit of political leaders to Lakhimpur Kheri has been prohibited following which she has been stopped in Sitapur,” said Sitapur district magistrate Vishal Bhardwaj and superintendent of police RP Singh.
The charges will be removed once they are assured that there will not be any breach of peace, Sitapur sub-divisional magistrate Pyare Lal Maurya added.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is keen to go to Lakhimpur Kheri on Wednesday and at least five senior leaders are likely to accompany him, said people aware of developments. Five Trinamool Congress MPs reached the hamlet on Tuesday and spoke to the family members of the victims.
“Heartbreaking to meet the family of the young farmer who was crushed to death in Lakhimpur Kheri,” said TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev.
RLD chief Jayant Chaudhury, one of the few leaders to reach Lakhimpur, demanded President’s Rule in UP.
“There needs to be a separation between the state and the party which is not there in UP… from the district magistrate to state-level officials, police, it seems everyone has taken membership of the BJP,” Chaudhary said in a phone interview to PTI.
CB Pandey, former adviser to the Uttar Pradesh governor, said section 151 of the CrPC empowered a police officer to arrest any person without a warrant. He said a person can be arrested and under sections 107, 116 of CrPC on apprehension of breach of peace and a magistrate was empowered to release such person on a person bond.
