Rahul Gandhi defers Sambhal visit, new date to be decided today

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday deferred his visit to violence-hit Sambhal in western UP. Sources said he will visit the district soon; his tour programme will be finalised on Wednesday.

Gandhi had earlier planned to leave for Sambhal immediately after attending the Constitution Day event in Parliament. However, the programme was changed as the Congress leader had to attend another event on Samvidhan Rakshak Abhiyaan at Talkatora Stadium in the capital, said the sources.

Congress’s Saharanpur MP Imran Masood said Gandhi, him, Rajya Sabha MP Imran Pratapgarhi and some other party leaders will visit Sambhal soon to meet the people there.

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Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, too, has formed a delegation of party leaders, including Sambhal MP Zia-ur-Rehman Barq, to visit Sambhal and gather information about the violence and submit a report to him.