Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will likely attempt to visit Sambhal on Wednesday and meet the victims of the recent violence despite a ban on the entry of politicians and social workers into the city till December 10.

“Rahul and Priyanka are expected to reach Sambhal to take stock of the situation and meet the victims on Wednesday,” Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai told reporters here on Tuesday.

Locals had clashed with the police outside the Jama Masjid in Sambhal on November 24 after a court-appointed team arrived for a survey to ascertain whether the Mughal-era mosque had been built after demolishing a temple. Four people had died and many suffered injuries.

Sambhal district magistrate (DM) Rajendra Pensiya said: “An inquiry commission is probing the reasons behind the violence in the town. They are expected to be here till December 10 and meet a large number of people. We cannot allow any politician or social worker from outside to visit the place during this period. It is in the interest of peace and harmony.”

The news of the impending visit by Rahul and Priyanka has sent the local administration into a tizzy. Government sources told this newspaper that the DM had written to the administration in Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Amroha to stop the Congress leaders there if they tried to enter these districts from Delhi on their way to Sambhal.

“We have deployed police at all the toll plazas on the national highways not only for the Congress but also for all politicians who want to visit Sambhal. We have already stopped many leaders from Delhi, Rajasthan and Kerala who tried to enter Uttar Pradesh from the NCR,” an officer said.