Rahul Gandhi’s Convoy Meets With Accident on Way to UP's Sultanpur Court; Oppn Leader Safe, Several Injured

A convoy carrying Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was involved in a multi-vehicle collision on the Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh on Monday, leaving several people injured. Gandhi was safe, as per reports.

The accident occurred near the 91-km milestone, where five vehicles and an ambulance were involved in the collision. Congress workers, party office-bearers and several people associated with security arrangements were among those injured.

Gandhi was travelling to Sultanpur, where a special MP-MLA court was scheduled to pronounce its verdict on Monday in a defamation case against him.

Rahul Gandhi Arrives in Lucknow, Heads to Sultanpur

According to PTI, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rae Bareli MP arrived at Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport in Lucknow on Monday morning.

Hundreds of Congress workers and local party leaders had gathered at the airport to welcome him. Gandhi did not speak to reporters before leaving for Sultanpur.

Security arrangements were strengthened around the court complex in Sultanpur ahead of the proceedings, police officials told PTI.

Defamation Case Linked to Remarks About Amit Shah

The case stems from alleged objectionable remarks made by Gandhi about Amit Shah, then the BJP president, at a rally in Bengaluru ahead of the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections.

Vijay Mishra, a local BJP politician and former chairman of the Sultanpur District Cooperative Bank, filed the defamation complaint against Gandhi on August 4, 2018.

Gandhi appeared before the court in 2023 and secured bail. The court had initially scheduled its verdict for October 13, before postponing it to October 26.

The accident occurred as Gandhi travelled to attend the court proceedings.