Rahul Gandhi's Convoy Collide In Major Accident On Purvanchal Expressway

Several people were reportedly injured after five vehicles and an ambulance in Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's convoy collided near the 91-km milestone on the Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh. The accident took place at Haliyapur, about 100 km from the state capital, Lucknow.

CCTV footage from the site showed the ambulance in the rightmost lane, with several vehicles bunched together in the other lanes. A Scorpio SUV with a crumpled bonnet appeared to have stopped in front of the ambulance after the collision.

The injured reportedly include party workers, office-bearers and security personnel. The cause of the collision and the exact number of people injured were not immediately clear.

Gandhi was travelling to Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh, where he was scheduled to appear before a special MP-MLA court in connection with a 2018 defamation case.

Gandhi is set to appear before a special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur, which is set to pronounce its verdict in a defamation case against him on Monday. Gandhi arrived at Lucknow's Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport this morning. Hundreds of Congress workers and local party leaders gathered at the airport to welcome the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Raebareli MP.

Gandhi did not speak to reporters before leaving for Sultanpur. Uttar Pradesh Congress president Aradhana Mishra 'Mona' told PTI Videos, "We have complete faith in the judiciary. Rahul Gandhi ji is going to Sultanpur for that case only." Security arrangements have been strengthened in Sultanpur, particularly around the court complex, in view of the proceedings, police officials said.

The case relates to alleged objectionable remarks made by Gandhi against then BJP president Amit Shah at a rally in Bengaluru ahead of the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections.

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

Gandhi appeared before the court in 2023 and secured bail. The court had earlier fixed October 13 for pronouncing its verdict, which was subsequently scheduled for October 26.

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