Congress general secretary for Uttar Pradesh east, Priyanka Gandhi continued her dharna on Saturday July 20, after being detained by the state police in Mirzapur a day earlier when she was on her way to meet the families of victims of the Sonbhadra massacre.
ANI reported Gandhi as saying, “It has been 24 hours. I am not going to leave until & unless I am allowed to meet the victims of Sonbhadra’s firing case.”
Mirzapur: Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra & party workers continue to sit on dharna at Chunar Guest House. She says, "It has been 24 hours. I am not going to leave until & unless I am allowed to meet the victims of Sonbhadra's firing case." pic.twitter.com/mXVDBxutma
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) July 20, 2019
Gandhi has been detained at the Chunar Kila in Mirzapur, where the electricity was cut off. In the night, Gandhi tweeted that senior officials in U.P. police told her to leave without meeting the victims’ families. She said that the officials did not present any documents authorising the arrest.
उप्र सरकार ने ADG वाराणसी श्री बृज भूषण, वाराणसी कमिश्नर श्री दीपक अग्रवाल, कमिश्नर मीरजापुर, DIG मीरजापुर को मुझे ये कहने के लिए भेजा कि मैं यहाँ से पीड़ित परिवारों से मिले बग़ैर चली जाऊँ। सब एक घंटे से मेरे साथ बैठे हैं। न मुझे हिरासत में रखने का कोई आधार दिया है न कागज़ात दिए
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) July 19, 2019
She further said that her arrest was completely illegal, adding that she did not come here to violate any laws but simply to meet the families of Sonbhadra victims.
मैंने यह स्पष्ट करते हुए कि मैं किसी धारा का उल्लंघन करने नहीं बल्कि पीड़ितों से मिलने आयी थी सरकार के दूतों से कहा है कि बग़ैर मिले मैं यहाँ से वापस नहीं जाऊँगी।
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) July 19, 2019
Earlier in the day, Gandhi had said that the state government had kept her under arrest at the Chunar fort and that she was told to submit a bail of Rs 50,000 failing which she would be sent to 14 days imprisonment.
She said that state administration had orders from “higher-ups” to prevent her from reaching Sonbhadra.
उत्तर प्रदेश प्रशासन द्वारा मुझे पिछले 9 घंटे से गिरफ़्तार करके चुनार किले में रखा हुआ है। प्रशासन कह रहा है कि मुझे 50,000 की जमानत देनी है अन्यथा मुझे 14 दिन के लिए जेल की सज़ा दी जाएगी, मगर वे मुझे सोनभद्र नहीं जाने देंगे ऐसा उन्हें ‘ऊपर से ऑर्डर है’।
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) July 19, 2019
On the morning of July 20, she shared a video of the grieving families in Sonbhadra and asked if it was a crime to wipe their tears.
क्या इन आँसुओं को पोंछना अपराध है? pic.twitter.com/HdPAEkGJGj
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) July 20, 2019
On July 17, ten tribal farmers were killed and over 24 were injured in an attack over a piece of land. A village chief, Yagya Dutt, and his associates fired on the group of tribal farmers who had reportedly refused to give up the land they had tilled for generations. Dutt had allegedly brought nearly 200 men on 32 tractor trolleys to seize the property, claiming he had bought it ten years ago from a local family. After the tribal farmers opposed, the men fired at them for over half-an-hour.