Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday met Sonabhadra victims' families at the Chunar guest house in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, where she had spent the night.
The Congress leader said they had come on their own come to meet her today but were being prevented from doing so by the police and administration. She also urged media persons to put pressure on the administration to let the kin meet her.
On Friday, Gandhi was stopped from visiting the families by the police in Narayanpur. Priyanka was also scheduled to visit the place of the incident where 10 people were killed in the firing and 19 were injured on July 17.
Senior government officials met her late night on Friday, but they failed to convince her to return to Delhi.
"The families of those who were killed and injured have come from Sonbhadra to meet me on their own. Two relatives of the victims have come here to meet me but 15 others are not allowed to meet me, are being stopped. Even I am not allowed to meet them. I do not understand what the Uttar Pradesh government and police administration want," she said while speaking to media persons here.
She added, "Bhagwan jane inki mansikta kya hai? Aap thoda dabwav banayiya, unhe aana dijiye. Mere pichhe pade hain." (God knows what their the thought process is? You please put pressure, let them (kin of victims) come. They are after me."
Priyanka Gandhi said, “The Yogi government is creating a new example of anaesthesia by ignoring this tragedy. Without accounting for each tear from this tragedy, we will not go back.”
Earlier in the day, Priyanka met senior Uttar Pradesh administration officials and said she will not leave until and unless she is permitted to meet Sonbhadra victims families.
"It has been 24 hours. I am not going to leave until and unless I am allowed to meet the victims of Sonbhadra's firing case," Priyanka said.
The Congress leader said she has asked the police to allow her to visit Sonbhadra with two persons as that would not violate Section 144 imposed there, which restrict the movement of more than four persons in an area.
Gandhi had told the media on Friday, "I only want to meet the affected families, whose members have been mercilessly shot dead. A boy of my son's age was shot at and is lying in hospital. Tell me on what legal basis I have been stopped."
Meanwhile, Congress leaders Deepender Singh Hooda, Mukul Wasnik, Raj Babbar, Ratanjit Pratap Narain Singh, Jitin Prasada and Rajeev Shukla were also stopped at Varanasi airport on Saturday by police. They were on their way to Sonbhadra to meet the victims.
A four-member Parliamentary delegation of Trinamool Congress led by Derek O'Brien was detained at Varanasi airport, the party said in a tweet. The team had arrived in Uttar Pradesh to meet the families of the Sonbhadra firing victims.
Congress party workers sitting on dharna with Priyanka Gandhi have maintained that the fight will continue till she is allowed to go and meet the victims of Sonbhadra firing incident.
(With inputs from ANI)