Darbhanga Admin Denies Permission For Rahul Gandhi's Event, Venue Shifted Amid Controversy

Rahul Gandhi's student interaction in Darbhanga, Bihar, will proceed at the Town Hall after initial venue denial at the Ambedkar hostel.

File photo of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Source : PTI

Darbhanga/Patna, May 14 (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been allowed to interact with students in the north Bihar district of Darbhanga on May 15, but at a venue other than the one desired by the organisers, the district administration said late Wednesday night.

According to a statement from the District Public Relations Office, "Permission has been granted to the organisers" for the Leader of the Opposition's programme at the Town Hall.

The development came close on the heels of a press conference in Patna, addressed by AICC national media convenor Abhay Dubey, who alleged that the permission for Gandhi's interaction with students, at the Ambedkar hostel, had been "denied" at the instance of the state's ruling JD(U)-BJP combine.

"The district welfare officer in Darbhanga has written to us informing that it will not grant permission for the programme on May 15. No reason has been given. It seems a repressive measure taken at the behest of the state's ruling JD(U)-BJP combine," Dubey said.

Gandhi was scheduled to interact with Dalit students as part of "Shiksha Nyay Samvad", a state-wide public outreach programme.

Dubey also said, "We have urged the Darbhanga administration to review their decision. We hope good sense will prevail. Gandhi's programme was aimed at creating public awareness. It is unfortunate that his efforts are being viewed through the prism of politics. Be that as it may, he remains resolute in pushing the cause of social justice, of which education is an important component".

Earlier, AICC Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru had told reporters that besides attending the programme in Darbhanga, Gandhi was likely to watch "Phule", the biopic based on the lives of Dalit icon couple Jyotirao Phule and Savitribai Phule, at a theatre in the state capital.

(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)