Batla House Hurdle in Yatra: Black Flags Greet Rahul in Azamgarh

The protesters demanded a judicial probe of the 2008 Batla House encounter in Jamia Nagar, Delhi.

Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi addresses a roadshow during his Kisan Yatra. (Photo: PTI)

On Sunday, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi’s Kisan Mahayatra met with protesters holding up black flags as Gandhi passed through Azamgarh district. The protesters were demanding a judicial probe in the 2008 Batla House gunfight in Delhi.

In the gunfight on 19 September 2008 in Batla House area of Jamia Nagar in South Delhi, two suspected Indian Mujahideen terrorists – Atif Amin and Mohamed Sajid – were killed, while two other suspects, Saif and Zeeshan, were arrested.

Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma, who had led the police team, was also killed during the incident.

The Ulema Council has been advocating a judicial probe into the incident and claiming innocence of the two youths killed.

Local Intelligence Unit (LIU) had already got a whiff of the Ulema Council’s plans and had detained, as a preventive measure, its state president Nur-ul Huda. He said that the protests would continue.

Hundreds of people had also gathered at the Azamgarh crossing, where Anganwadi workers waited for hours to present a memorandum to the Congress Vice-President, but he did not accept it and moved on.

Gandhi later broke bread with a Dalit family at their house and moved ahead to garland a statue of former Congress leader Kalpanath Rai.

The Yatra will remain suspended for two days – Monday and Tuesday – owing to Eid, and will resume thereafter.

(With inputs from IANS)