With the Congress questioning the detention of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, officials said Tuesday a case has been registered in Sitapur against her and 10 others under sections related to preventive detention due to apprehension of breach of peace.
The case under Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) sections 151, 107, 116 (all related to preventive detention due to apprehension of breach of peace) has also been registered against Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Kumar Lallu and party leader Deependra Hooda, the officials said.
"These are preventive sections. Once we get assurance that there would not be violation of peace by them these sections will be removed," Sitapur Sub-divisional Magistrate Pyare Lal Maurya said.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other party leaders were detained on Monday when they were going to meet the victims of the violence that erupted during a farmers' protest in Lakhimpur Kheri a day earlier.
Eight people were killed as violence erupted during a farmers' protest, claiming the lives of both farmers and BJP workers ahead of a visit to Lakhimpur by Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya.
Several Congress leaders including P Chidambaram have questioned Gandhi's detention, describing it as "totally illegal" and "unconstitutional".
In a statement, Chidambaram said Tuesday the facts and circumstances concerning Gandhi's detention in Sitapur "conclusively establish that there is no rule of law in UP".
Meanwhile, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu said the state party will march towards Lakhimpur Kheri if Union minister Ajay Mishra's son is not arrested and Priyanka Gandhi is not released by Wednesday.
"If, by tomorrow, the Union Minister’s son behind the brutal murder of Farmers is not arrested, and our leader
@PriyankaGandhi being unlawfully arrested, fighting for farmers is not released, the Punjab Congress will march towards Lakhimpur Kheri," he tweeted.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said he will meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the evening and will raise with him the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.
Channi, who along with some ministers and Congress legislators held a silent protest at Gandhi Smarak Bhawan in Chandigarh, said the violence in Lakhimpur Kheri reminds him of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh tragedy.
Channi alleged that the killing of the farmers was intentional .
He said he will be meeting the Union home minister at 6.30 pm and will raise the issue of the Lakhimpur Kheri incident with him.
Slamming the BJP government at the Centre, he said it should not force the country's youth to look at martyrs like Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and Shahid Udham Singh for again restoring democracy in the country.
Channi said the Lakhimpur Kheri incident was painful and demanded that the three controversial farm laws should be repealed immediately.
