UP: All roads blocked, SP neta turns 'groom' to enter Rampur

BAREILLY: With police deployed on various roads leading to Rampur to ensure that no Samajwadi Party worker reaches the city to show solidarity with senior leader Azam Khan , the party’s district unit president of Sambhal, Firoz Khan, tricked the police by covering his face with groom’s ‘sehra’ and succeeded in entering Rampur.

A few other party workers also accompanied him disguised as part of the wedding procession.


Khan had disguised himself as groom donning and also wore a ‘sehra’ to cover his face and took comparatively long route via Joya to reach Moradabad, from where he headed to Rampur.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav was scheduled to arrive in Rampur on Friday evening to demonstrate solidarity with Azam Khan against whom more than 80 FIRs have been lodged so far on various charges, ranging from goat theft to land grab.

Party workers from neighbouring districts were instructed to reach Rampur during Akhilesh Yadav’s visit to stage protest against “abuse of government machinery to harass the parliamentarian”.

The local intelligence unit (LIU) had already alerted the police about mass movement of party workers from Sambhal to Rampur. Following which, heavy force was deployed on all crossings and roads leading to Rampur to stop SP leaders.

Police stopped MLA Iqbal Mahmood and MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq at Chandausi crossing. Both of them were allowed to move to Rampur later but their supporters were sent back. Additional superintendent of police Alok Jaiswal and circle officer KK Saroj had themselves taken position at the Chandausi crossing to ensure that no SP worker could move to Rampur.

Speaking with TOI, MP Barq said that the way they were stopped by UP police was “completely undemocratic”.

“Police officials couldn’t give any satisfactory reply when questioned why our workers were being stopped from moving to Rampur. Was there any riots or troublesome situation in Rampur or police had imposed section 144 of CrPC there? We asked them, but they kept silent. We were going to Rampur to receive our party leader. Such things are not good for a healthy democratic system,” senior parliamentarian Barq said.