Priyanka Gandhi leaves Sonbhadra, but vows to return

Lucknow, July 20: Although Pruyanka Gandhi was not allowed to enter Sonbhadra, a few relatives of victimes came to meet her. Meanwhile, 5-6 more Congress leaders arrived at Varanasi to visit Sonbhadra, but were stopped at the airport where a delegation is also staging a dharna.

Priyanka, who was detained in a guest house, has now been allowed to leave. She is heading back for Delhi. Just before leaving the guest house, she toled the media, "I will be back."

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, who was detained in Narayanpur by police earlier on Friday while she was on her way to meet victims of Sonbhadra's firing case, sat on a 'dharna' at a guest house near Sonbhadra after she refused to leave without meeting the families of 10 people who were gunned down in Sonbhadra this week.

"Two relatives of victims have come here to meet me, 15 others are not being allowed to meet me. Even I am not being allowed to meet them. Bhagwan jane inki mansikta kya hai? Aap thoda dawab banayiya, unhe aana dijiye. Mere pichhe pade hain," she told media after meeting relatives on Saturday.

As per latest updates, Congress leaders Deepender Singh Hooda, Mukul Wasnik, Raj Babbar, Ratanjit Pratap Narain Singh, Jitin Prasada and Rajeev Shukla have also been stopped at Varanasi airport by police.

"This government doesn't want that someone should wipe off victims' tears. Whatever has happened is unconstitutional and undemocratic and it seems as if Uttar Pradesh govt has implemented undeclared emergency to hid its sins and short comings," Congress leader Pramod Tiwari told the media.

Priyanka was on Friday detained and stopped from going to Sonbhadra, triggering a standoff with the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh.

"My objective has been served as I have met them (victim of Sonbhadra firing). I am still under detention, let's see what the administration says. Congress party will give a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the kin of the person who died in the incident," she told media on Saturday.

Talking to reporters, she also described the killings of members of the Gond tribe in Sonbhadra as "massacre" and demanded Rs 25 lakh as compensation for each of their families.

Priyanka was detained at the Chunar Guest House after she was stopped from going to Murtiya village in Sonebhadra district. The police, however, denied that she had been arrested.

Mirzapur: Early morning visuals from Chunar Guest House where Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra & party workers have been sitting on dharna. She was detained in Narayanpur by police yesterday while she was on her way to meet victims of Sonbhadra's firing case. pic.twitter.com/8Dl4UaXj4T

— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) July 20, 2019

Chunar sub divisional magistrate Satya Prakash said Priyanka was under preventive detention and had refused to furnish a personal bond.On Twitter, the Congress general secretary said she had been under arrest for the past nine hours.

The Congress leader arrived in Varanasi on Friday morning and met the injured persons admitted to the Trauma Centre of the Banaras Hindu University. When she proceeded towards Sonebhadra, her convoy was stopped on the Mirzapur border. A defiant Priyanka then squatted on the ground with the Congress workers and was later taken away in a government vehicle to Chunar.

Ten people were killed and 28 injured in the clash between supporters of a village headman, Yagya Dutt, and the Gond tribals in Sonbhadra district's Ghorawal area on Wednesday. Dutt's supporters allegedly opened fire on the tribals.