Priyanka leaves for Sonbhadra after meeting Congress workers at Varanasi airport

VARANASI: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday met the party workers at Varanasi airport here before leaving for Sonbhadra to meet the family members of 10 Gond tribals who were gunned down last month over a land dispute.

Priyanka Gandhi will also talk to the affected families about the development works in the Umbha village and try to get a first-hand account of the steps taken by the government for their security after the incident, party sources said.

The party leaders and workers gave a warm welcome to Gandhi on her arrival at the Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport here around 10 am.

Later, she left for Sonbhadra by road.

Ten people were gunned down and 28 others injured when armed men led by a village pradhan clashed with the villagers in a bid to take possession of a disputed piece of land.

The Congress leader had tried to visit the village after the massacre but was denied permission by the district administration which had promulgated section 144 of the CrPC in view of the prevailing tension.

After meeting those injured in the Varanasi hospital, she was stopped and detained in Mirzapur on her way to Umbha.

She was detained for the night by the district administration at the Chunar fort.

The members of the tribal community had met Priyanka Gandhi the next day.

The Congress leader had promised monetary help to the affected families which was handed over to them by a delegation of party leaders later.