Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai has vowed to visit Sambhal peacefully despite receiving a notice from the Lucknow Police asking him to postpone his trip due to concerns over maintaining law and order.
“They have issued me a notice and have asked me that my visit will cause chaos. Certainly, we also don’t want chaos but peace to prevail. The atrocity and injustice that was done there by the police and the government, I want my leadership to know this. They (police) gave me notice but I will go there peacefully,” Rai told media.
Earlier in the day, the Uttar Pradesh Police issued a notice to Rai, advising him to cancel his visit to the violence-hit Sambhal district. The notice, which cited concerns over peace and communal sensitivity in the area, requested that Rai cooperate by postponing his program to prevent violating the orders of the District Magistrate of Sambhal.
“Keeping in mind the peace and communal sensitivity in Sambhal district, he should cooperate in the public interest and postpone his proposed program so that the order passed by the District Magistrate of Sambhal district, Section 163 BNSS is not violated,” the notice read. It further specified that no outsider, social organization, or public representative would be allowed into the district without prior permission from the competent authority, emphasizing that Rai’s visit with a Congress delegation on December 2 could disturb the peace.
A Congress delegation, led by Rai, was scheduled to visit Sambhal in response to a stone-pelting incident on November 24. On Sunday, a three-member judicial committee conducted an inspection in the Shahi Masjid area, where the incident occurred. The committee, accompanied by security personnel, visited the violence-affected region, speaking with local residents and officials.
Moradabad Divisional Commissioner Aunjaneya Kumar Singh stated that the situation in Sambhal was currently peaceful and that authorities were closely monitoring the situation.
Tensions in Sambhal have been running high since November 19, when a local court ordered a survey of the Jama Masjid. Clashes between protestors and police during the survey resulted in four deaths.