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UP govt stops Jharkhand Congress workers heading to Lakhimpur Kheri at border
Scores of party leaders and workers that included state ministers Banna Gupta and Badal Patralekh besides legislators and other office-bearers and workers were denied entry by the UP administration, with the state police having barricaded the highway on the Wyndhmganj-Garhwa border.
Congress workers led by Jharkhand unit chief Rajesh Thakur who left for Lakhimpur Kheri on Wednesday night were stopped by the Uttar Pradesh administration at the state border leading to a six-hour sit-in on the road by the party workers in protest.
Scores of party leaders and workers that included state ministers Banna Gupta and Badal Patralekh besides legislators and other office-bearers and workers were denied entry by the UP administration, with the state police having barricaded the highway on the Wyndhmganj-Garhwa border. The UP administration stopped the Congress party contingent from entering the state at around 3 am on Thursday.
“We were going to Lakhimpur Kheri to support the farmers and strengthen the protest being led by our leaders Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The Uttar Pradesh government did not allow us entry despite the fact that two state ministers were part of the contingent and we had informed the UP government on Wednesday of our plans. And the policemen who were at the border had no clue what to do and why they were stopping us,” said Jharkhand Congress president Rajesh Thakur.
“The Yogi government and the BJP want to subvert democracy by using the brute force of the police but we will not budge. We will chalk out our plans again and reach Lucknow and Lakhimpur Kheri whenever required,” he added.
The state Congress president led his workers back to the Jharkhand capital-- Ranchi after protesting for around six hours at the border.
Others who attended the protest included party working president and legislator Bandu Tirkey, working president Shahzada Anwar, spokespersons Rajiv Ranjan Prasad and Kumar Raja.
Reacting to the development, the BJP described it as ‘political tourism’ of the Congress ministers.
“State agriculture minister Badal Patralekh is very concerned about farmers in Uttar Pradesh, but he is not bothered about dues to farmers against paddy procurement and black marketing of fertilisers in Jharkhand,” Jharkhand BJP general secretary Aditya Sahu told reporters last evening.
