UP: SP delegation stopped from visiting tension-hit Bareilly due to law and order concerns

Bareilly District Magistrate issued a letter directing the Lucknow Police Commissioner and Superintendents of Police of other districts to prevent any political delegation from entering Bareilly without prior permission.

Lucknow: The situation in Bareilly still remains tense after the violent riots on 26 September. Meanwhile, a delegation led by Samajwadi Party Leader of the Opposition, Mata Prasad Pandey, was scheduled to visit Bareilly to discuss the "I Love Mohammad" controversy and the resulting unrest. However, the Bareilly District Magistrate issued a letter directing the Lucknow Police Commissioner and Superintendents of Police of other districts to prevent any political representatives from entering Bareilly without prior permission. This caused a stir in administrative circles, and the police deployed tight security.

Leader of the Opposition Placed Under House Arrest
A heavy police force was deployed outside the residence of Leader of the Opposition, Mata Prasad Pandey, in Lucknow since Monday morning. He was placed under house arrest. However, as he tried to leave the residence and get into his car, the police stopped him. During this time, his supporters raised slogans. At the same time, police were deployed outside the home of SP MP Ziaur Rahman Barq.

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SP MPs stopped at Ghazipur border
Meanwhile, a delegation of Samajwadi Party MPs was also traveling on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway to Bareilly. This delegation included Mohibullah Nadvi, Iqra Hasan, and Harendra Singh Malik. However, the UP police stopped them at the Ghazipur border. SP MP Mohibullah Nadvi called this an unconstitutional move and said it was another high-handedness by the government.

SP leaders' accusations against the administration
SP MP Iqra Hasan said that the administration was stopping them without any reason. She said, "We are not going with any agenda; we just wanted to assess the situation in Bareilly. We don't understand why the administration is stopping us." She alleged that the UP government was preventing them from going to Bareilly to hide its misdeeds.

"Attempt to suppress our voice"
Mata Prasad Pandey said, "If the Collector had written a letter, I would have accepted it, but now I have received a letter from the Bareilly DM, stating that our arrival could worsen the situation. I believe the administration is preventing us to hide its own shortcomings. We will discuss this with our party leaders and decide on the next step."

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Citing security and law and order
Police and administration say the move is aimed at maintaining security and law and order in Bareilly. Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Ashutosh Kumar Singh said, "There has been no disturbance so far. There are no problems anywhere in the city. Police are deployed everywhere and the situation is under complete control."

Internet Services Suspended and Arrests Rising
To control the situation in Bareilly, the administration suspended mobile internet and broadband services for 48 hours, from 3 p.m. on October 2nd to October 4th. According to the police, this step was taken to maintain peace in the city. Also, Ittehad-e-Millat Council (IMC) National General Secretary Nafees Khan and his son Farman Khan have been arrested in connection with the September 26th protest. A total of 81 people have been arrested in this case so far.

Statement from Bareilly Police Officials
Bareilly Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anurag Arya said that Nafees Khan and his son Farman have revealed that all those arrested were part of a conspiracy. Meanwhile, the police have tightened security in various parts of Bareilly and taken steps to prevent any unrest.