Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister SS Randhawa were not allowed to land in Lucknow this morning, Congress sources said in an escalating confrontation with the Uttar Pradesh government over the death of eight, including four farmers, in violence at Lakhimpur Kheri on Sunday.
Senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was detained late last night on her way to Lakhimpur Kheri to meet the families of the farmers who were killed.
An order in Hindi from the UP government to the Lucknow airport said because of the law and order situation over the Lakhimpur Kheri incident, the flights of the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and the Punjab Deputy Chief Minister should not be allowed to land at Lucknow's Amausi airport.
The violence erupted on Sunday as a group of protesting farmers tried to block Union Minister Ajay Kumar Mishra and Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya from visiting the area.
The farmers claimed the violence broke out after their car ran over protesters. Visuals from the area showed arson and vehicles set on fire.
