NEW DELHI: Lucknow Police on Monday issued a notice to Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai asking him to postpone his Sambhal visit. Police asked Rai to cooperate in the public interest so that the order passed by the District Magistrate of Sambhal district, Section 163 BNSS is not violated keeping in mind the peace and communal sensitivity. Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai and other Congress leaders are scheduled to visit Sambhal today.

"They have issued me a notice and have asked me that my visit will cause chaos. Certainly, we also don't want chaos but peace to prevail. The atrocity and injustice that was done there by the police and the govt, I want my leadership to know this. They (police) gave me notice but I will go there peacefully," said Ajay Rai. The party leaders, including the Uttar Pradesh Congress chief, remained at the Lucknow party office overnight.

"All the party workers decided that we will stay in one place at our party office. It is our good fortune that we stayed here today and decided the strategy for the future as to how we will go and what we will do. We will try and follow the Gandhian way since they have been deployed in large numbers outside.Our workers will try to leave by 10.30 am. It is their job to stop them, they will stop us, it is our job to go and we will try to go. There is only one reason to go, the atrocities and injustice that they have done there, the way people were beaten up there, the way they were shot in the head, the government is scared of all these things that the government will be exposed," Rai said earlier.
Additionally, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said that the delegation was going for fact finding and restoration of peace. "Congress delegation was going to Sambhal for fact-finding and restoration of peace but the District Administration has kept Ajay Rai and Mona ji under house arrest. This creates doubts - why are they being stopped and what are they trying to hide?," said Tiwari.

BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla slammed Congress move and said doing politics on riots and deaths is the character of Congress and and Samajwadi Party. "This is called politic of 'CAP' -Competitive Appeasement Politics...Doing politics on riots and deaths is the character of Congress and Samajwadi Party," said Poonawalla.

Meanwhile on Sunday, a three-member judicial committee inspected the Shahi Masjid area in Sambhal under heavy security presence. The committee interacted with local residents and officials while investigating the November 24 incident.
Previously, on November 30, authorities prevented a Samajwadi Party (SP) delegation from entering Sambhal district.