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UP govt allows all political parties to visit Lakhimpur Kheri amid row
The development comes as Congress' Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal and other leaders were on their way to visit the violence-hit district.
The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday permitted political parties to visit Lakhimpur Kheri, where eight people, including four farmers, were killed in violence on Sunday, news agency PTI reported, quoting the state's additional chief secretary Awanish Kumar Awasthi. According to the report, only five people will be allowed at a time owing to protocol in place to check the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
The development comes as Congress' Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal and other leaders were on their way to visit the violence-hit district. After denying permission to them initially, the state government allowed the leaders after the last rites rituals of all four farmers were completed.
Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government is yet to release Priyanka Gandhi, who has been detained since Monday morning at the PAC compound in Sitapur. She was arrested after an altercation with local administration while she was trying to visit Lakhimpur Kheri to meet the families of farmers killed in Sunday's violence.
The government in Uttar Pradesh is facing countrywide criticism after a vehicle ran over farmers during a protest on Sunday. The SUV was reportedly part of the convoy of Union minister of state Ajay Kumar Mishra's son Ashish. However, the minister has denied the charges.
"The farmers of the country are being systematically attacked," said Rahul Gandhi, slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He also alleged that a new type of politics is being played in Uttar Pradesh where criminals are doing whatever they want and are roaming freely while those seeking justice for the victims are being arrested.
The four others who have been killed in the incident include two BJP workers, a driver of Ajay Kumar Mishra, and Raman Kashyap, a journalist working for a private television channel.
The Uttar Pradesh Police has registered a case against Ajay Mishra's son, Ashish, but no arrest has been made so far.
Meanwhile, Gurvinder Singh alias Gyaniji, one of the four farmers killed in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, was cremated on Wednesday morning after a second autopsy was conducted on him as demanded by his family. The mortal remains of the three other dead farmers were cremated at their native places on Tuesday.
