Rahul Gandhi Lakhimpur Kheri visit: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi along with Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi and Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel sat on a dharna (sit in protest) at the exit gate of Lucknow airport claiming they were not being allowed to leave. Rahul Gandhi reportedly refused to use VIP route and police vehicles for his visit to Lakhimpur Kheri.
Despite repeated requests from security forces to follow the set protocol, Rahul Gandhi and his team insisted on using their own vehicles to go to Lakhimpur Kheri.
The Congress leader even took to Twitter to counter Uttar Pradesh government's 'permission' to visit the violence-hit district.
Eventually, after much fiasco at the airport, the Congress leader left for Lakhimpur district in his won vehicle.
Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders travelled economy class from Delhi to Lucknow from where were to reach violence-hit Lakhimpur Kheri via road.
The Uttar Pradesh government has given permission to Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and three others to visit Lakhimpur.
Earlier in the day, the state government had denied permission to Rahul Gandhi for the visit, and an official spokesperson had said that no one would be allowed to visit the violence-hit district to vitiate its atmosphere.
"Permission has been given to five leaders of Congress, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, to visit Lakhimpur," Additional Chief Secretary, Information, Navneet Sehgal told PTI.
Priyanka Gandhi is in detention at the PAC compound in Sitapur since Monday morning while on way to Lakhimpur Kheri where eight people, including four farmers and a journalist, were killed on Sunday (October 3).
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