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Venugopal urges Yogi to allow Congress delegation to visit Lakhimpur on Oct 6
Official sources told news agency ANI that the Rahul Gandhi-led delegation will meet the families of the victims who were killed in Sunday's violence in Lakhimpur Kheri.
A day before the five-member Congress delegation led by Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit Lakhimpur Kheri, party general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal on Tuesday wrote to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, seeking permission for the delegation to visit the district on Wednesday.
Official sources told news agency ANI that the Rahul Gandhi-led delegation will meet the families of the victims who were killed in Sunday's violence in Lakhimpur Kheri.
“A five-member delegation of Indian National Congress led by the former Congress President and Member of Parliament, Shri Rahul Gandhi propose to visit Lakhimpur Kheri tomorrow October 6 to express condolences to the bereaved families and to know the facts first hand,” KC Venugopal said in his letter to Adityanath.
Pointing out that leaders from West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh were allowed to visit Lakhimpur Kheri, Venugopal further said that the Congress delegation should also be allowed to visit the district. “in the same spirit necessary arrangements may kindly be made," he urged.
Earlier in the day, leaders from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) visited Lakhimpur Kheri, where eight people died on Sunday.
On Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut. Speaking to reporters, Raut said that he and Gandhi held discussions on sending a joint delegation of opposition leaders to Lakhimpur Kheri. He said that the illegal detention of Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi was wrong.
"Why Priyanka Gandhi, who is the daughter of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and the granddaughter of former prime minister Indira Gandhi who made sacrifices for the country, was detained while those committing the crime were roaming around freely," the Shiv Sena MP added.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, along with several other leaders of the party including Deepender Singh Hooda, was detained by the Uttar Pradesh Police, as they were on their way to Lakhimpur to meet the families of the deceased farmers.
An FIR has been registered against Priyanka, Hooda and UP Congress president Ajay Kumar Lallu for disturbing the peace. Gandhi on Tuesday spoke to the families of the victims over the phone while being in detention in Sitapur.
