Sambhal: Will Rahul Gandhi get to visit tomorrow, or will he be forced back?

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is set to visit Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal district, where recent communal violence has claimed at least five lives.

Five Congress MPs are expected to accompany the LoP on the visit on Wednesday, 4 December.

The Congress' Uttar Pradesh unit chief, Ajay Rai, has confirmed the plan, stating, “Rahul Gandhi will meet the victims’ families and assess the situation on the ground. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is also likely to join him.”

Saharanpur MP Imran Masood also confirmed to news agency ANI that Rahul Gandhi is expected in Sambhal tomorrow.

Alerted by Rahul Gandhi's proposed visit, the Sambhal district magistrate has sent a letter to the adjoining districts, instructing them to prevent Rahul Gandhi from entering the violence-riven district.

The violence in Sambhal erupted on 24 November, when a large number of protesters clashed with police near the Shahi Jama Masjid during a court-ordered survey of the 16th-century mosque.

The survey was conducted following claims that the mosque was built on the site of a Harihar (Shiva–Vishnu) temple. The clashes left four dead immediately and over a dozen injured, including several police personnel. Two people succumbed later.

This was the second survey of the mosque in less than a week, with the first conducted on 19 November. The situation in Sambhal remains tense but under control, with heavy police deployment in the area to maintain order and prohibitions on 'outsider' entry.

Among the many FIRs, there are local political leaders named — including of the Samajwadi Party, which has claimed that some of those named were not even present in the district at the time.

The incident has drawn national attention, with several opposition parties, including the Congress, criticising the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government for failing to prevent the violence and questioning the necessity of such 'surveys' in spite of the Places of Worship Act clearly laying out the status in such cases — especially as that was not even the plea before the court that ordered it.

Confirmation for the Rahul Gandhi’s visit came a day after Uttar Pradesh Congress leaders, including Ajay Rai, were barred by authorities from visiting Sambhal. Rai described the police action as an attempt to suppress the opposition’s voice.

Similarly, a delegation from the Samajwadi Party (SP) led by party leader Akhilesh Yadav was also prevented from visiting the violence-hit district, sparking widespread criticism.

According to Congress party sources, Rahul Gandhi initially planned to visit Sambhal on 27 November, immediately after attending the Constitution Day event in Parliament. However, he deferred his visit to participate in another event, the Samvidhan Rakshak Abhiyaan, held at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi the same day.

The Congress has consistently highlighted the increasing communal polarisation in Uttar Pradesh under the BJP regime both in the state and at the centre, with Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath being one of the saffron party's star campaigners nationwide.

Gandhi, on his visit, will certaibly be looking to highlight the plight of the victims of violence and reiterate the party’s stand against communal scapegoating and dogwhistles.