797: Why Did the UP Govt Prevent Opposition Leaders From Visiting Lakhimpur Kheri?

<div>The farmers' protests in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri district on 3 October took a grim turn as at least eight people were killed, including four farmers, after a vehicle part of a ministerial convoy allegedly ploughed through the crowd.<br> <br> </div> <div>The vehicle, according to several media reports and farmer statements, was part of a convoy in which the Union minister of state Ajay Misra’s son, Ashish Misra, was part of and the SUV he was allegedly driving ran over three farmers.<br> <br> In the horrific violence that followed the incident, four BJP workers – who were part of the minister’s convoy – were killed. The angry farmers also reportedly vandalised and set fire to the convoy vehicles.<br> <br> Meanwhile, the incident also kicked up a political storm with the UP Police stopping and detaining opposition party leaders like Congress’ Priyanka Gandhi and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav from visiting the site.<br> <br> </div> <div>The state government also prohibited Punjab and Chhattisgarh chief ministers from landing in Lucknow after both expressed that they want to pay a visit to the kin of the deceased farmers.<br> <br> </div> <div>So what exactly happened in Lakhimpur Kheri which has warranted such a strong reaction from the UP government?<br> <br> </div> <div> <br> <strong>Host and Producer: </strong>Himmat Shaligram</div> <div> <strong>Guest: </strong>Aditya Menon, The Quint’s Political Editor.</div> <div> <strong>Editor:</strong> Shelly Walia</div> <div><br> </div> <div> <strong>Music:</strong> Big Bang Fuzz</div> <div><br> </div> <div><strong>Listen to The Big Story podcast on:</strong></div> <div><br> </div> <div>Apple: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=https%3A%2F%2Fapple.co%2F2AYdLIl&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">https://apple.co/2AYdLIl</a> </div> <div>Saavn: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F2oix78C&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt