Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [India] : The Uttar Pradesh police have detained a delegation of Punjab ministers and MLAs led by Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa at Saharanpur, a police official said. Randhawa was accompanied by Punjab Congress Committee (PCC) working president and MLA Kuljit Nagra and other MLAs namely, Parminder Singh Pinki, Barindermeet Singh Pahra, Kuldeep Vaid, Kulbir Singh Zira and Angad Singh. They were on their way to Lakhimpur Kheri to meet the families of the victims who were allegedly mowed down by the convoy of Union Minister of State Ajay Mishra Teni’s son yesterday. Earlier, the Uttar Pradesh Government refused to grant permission to land the aircraft at the Lucknow airport in which the deputy chief minister was on board. After that Randhawa and all other Punjab MLAs left by road to Lakhimpur Kheri. However, they were detained at Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh to prevent their entry into Lakhimpur Kheri. Before his departure, Randhawa said to reporters that he would meet the families of the victims personally and gain firsthand knowledge about the situation. The deputy chief minister here demanded that the culprits must be arrested immediately. As many as eight people were killed on Sunday in Lakhimpur Kheri following violence that broke out after a car hit protesting farmers. Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of several farmer unions, issued a statement on Sunday regarding the incident claiming the death of four farmers and alleged that one of the four farmers was shot dead by Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra Teni’s son–Ashish Mishra, while the others have been allegedly run over by the vehicles of his convoy. However, Ashish Mishra refuted SKM’s allegations and said he was not present at the spot where the incident took place.
