Hyderabad: Telangana Minister Ponnam Prabhakar expressed concern after the Rahul Gandhi convoy accident on Uttar Pradesh’s Purvanchal Expressway injured several people. He hoped everyone involved would remain safe and out of danger.
Prabhakar offered prayers for Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, security personnel and others affected by the collision. He wished them strength and safety during the difficult time.
Police said five vehicles at the rear of Gandhi’s convoy collided with an ambulance near Haliyapur, around 100 km from Lucknow. Gandhi escaped injury. The injured included Congress workers and security personnel.
Rahul Gandhi convoy accident involved five vehicles near Haliyapur
CCTV footage showed the ambulance travelling in the right fast lane, while several vehicles crowded the adjacent lanes. The footage also showed a Scorpio SUV with a damaged bonnet stopped in front of the ambulance after the collision.
Gandhi had arrived at Lucknow airport earlier that day. His convoy then headed towards Sultanpur, about 135 km away. The crash occurred when the vehicles were around 35 km from their destination.
Gandhi was due to appear before a special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur in a defamation case over alleged remarks about Amit Shah, the BJP’s president at the time. The court was expected to announce its verdict that day, requiring Gandhi to appear in person.
The case dates to August 4, 2018, when BJP leader Vijay Mishra filed a complaint against Gandhi. Mishra, a former chairman of the Sultanpur District Cooperative Bank, alleged that Gandhi made objectionable remarks about Shah during a campaign rally in Bengaluru. The rally took place ahead of the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections.