At least six people were injured in a stampede at a Janata Darbar event attended by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav at his ancestral village of Saifai in Etawah on Sunday, PTI reported. A zilla panchayat chief and some media persons were among those injured. This was the chief minister's first visit to the village after reports of a feud within the ruling Samajwadi Party surfaced.
Witnesses told the news agency that the chief minister was interacting with the public outside a Public Works Department building, when a section of the crowd rushed towards him creating a "stampede-like situation". The injured are being treated at a local hospital.
Officials said the turnout at the event was beyond the estimated numbers, making crowd control a challenge for the local police. The chief minister was in the village to celebrate Diwali with his extended family.
The infighting within the Samajwadi Party began after Akhilesh Yadav's uncle Shivpal Yadav was appointed the state party chief in September. The move, which was reportedly implemented because of fears of an anti-incumbency vote, did not go down well with Akhilesh Yadav, who then relieved his uncle of major portfolios in the Cabinet. National party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav had to intervene to bring the situation under control. The chief minister’s supporters are functioning independently from a separate office in Lucknow.
The Samajwadi Party has commenced inviting other parties in the state to form a pre-poll alliance despite factions supporting the rival camps of Akhilesh Yadav and Shivpal Yadav.
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