Baghel stages sit-in at Lucknow airport

Raipur: Chief Minister
of Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday said that it is shame that action was
not taken against the culprits of Lakhirmpur Kheri incident, in which four farmers
among eight were killed.

Talking to media in a
virtual press conference from Lucknow on Tuesday afternoon, Baghel said that at
present, Section 144 has been imposed in Lakhimpur Kheri and so he was not
allowed to go there and meet the family of the victims.

However, the chief minister
said that he would reach to them as soon as Section 144 is lifted and then no
one can prevent him and other senior Congress leaders including Priyanka
Gandhi.

The BJP leaders are
celebrating ‘Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav’ in Uttar Pradesh at a time when justice
has been denied to the victims of Lakhimpur Kheri incident.

The opposition leaders were
stopped by Uttar Pradesh government to meet the family members of deceased
farmers which is condemnable. The rights of farmers are being crushed, he said.

Baghel said that when
his flight landed at Lucknow Airport, he was asked to alight first and then he
was taken in a bus to the arrival lounge of the Airport where he was informed
that he was not being allowed to go outside the Airport.  According to the protocol, a chief minister
is generally provided a car but Bhupesh Baghel was taken in a bus at the
Lucknow Airport.

Baghel said that he had
gone to Lucknow to meet Priyanka Gandhi, who has been in police custody for two
days in Sitapur. But he was not allowed to leave the Airport and therefore he
staged sit-in protest at the Airport on Tuesday afternoon.

Replying to a query on
BJP leaders’ allegations that he is playing politics over the deaths of
farmers, Chief Minister Baghel said that the Congress party is in opposition in
Uttar Pradesh and so he came to Uttar Pradesh to meet Priyanka Gandhi and other
Congress leaders. 

Replying to another
query on his future course of action, the Chief Minister said, “Now, it depends
on Uttar Pradesh either the police allow me to leave the Airport to meet
Priyanka Gandhi or not.”

Asked on the BJP’s
allegations over Silger incident, Bhupesh Baghel said, “The BJP leaders have
not been stopped to go to Silger. The BJP is in opposition in Chhattisgarh. If
the BJP leaders want to go to Silger, they could go there.”

Responding to another
query, Baghel termed the BJP government as anti-farmer and claimed that Chief
Minister Yogi Adityanath government is fearful and so the BJP government is
stopping the opposition leaders to go to meet the family members of the
deceased farmers.

Chhattisgarh Chief
Minister Baghel was on Tuesday afternoon stopped by Uttar Pradesh police at
Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh amid widespread
demonstrations against eight deaths in Lakhimpur district of Uttar Pradesh on
October 3. Baghel departed from Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi
for Lucknow at 12.20 pm by a regular flight and he arrived at 1.25 at Chaudhary
Charan Singh Airport, Lucknow.