Stampede-like situation disrupts Rahul, Akhilesh rally

Lucknow: A joint rally of the INDIA bloc, featuring Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, was cancelled after the supporters of the two parties went berserk and broke the barriers to come close to their leaders on Sunday afternoon.

According to reports, the moment Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav reached the Padila ground at Phaphamau under the Phulpur Lok Sabha constituency, the crowd went out of control, breaking through barricades and reaching the stage.

In the ensuing melee, they damaged microphones following which the electricity system was also disrupted. Many spectators and media persons received injuries in the stampede-like situation. Rahul and Akhilesh appeared visibly agitated when their supporters climbed the stage. Both leaders tried to pacify the crowd and waited for the situation to stabilise. However, as the chaos persisted, they stayed there for about 20 minutes before leaving in a helicopter without delivering any speech.

The public meeting was organised at the Padila ground in support of Samajwadi Party candidate Amarnath Singh Maurya, who is contesting the Phulpur parliamentary seat.

Later, both Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav reached Mungari village in the Karchhana Assembly constituency at 2 pm on Sunday afternoon and addressed a meeting in support of INDIA bloc candidate Ujjwal Raman Singh, who is in the fray from the Allahabad Parliamentary constituency.