Dissatisfied farmers shout 'Go back to Italy' during Rahul's Amethi visit

Amethi: Congress president Rahul Gandhi faced serious confrontation in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, where farmers in his parliamentary constituency staged a protest and raised slogans asking him to 'go back to Italy'.

The farmers protested in Gauriganj town in Amethi district on Wednesday demanding that either their land that was given to Rajiv Gandhi Foundation be returned or they are provided employment.

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Raga faced the opposition while visiting Amethi to kickstart Congress’ poll campaign for the general elections. The farmers staged the protest near Samrat Cycle factory, which was inaugurated by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi when he was the Lok Sabha lawmaker from Amethi.

In the 1980s, Jain brothers had taken over 65.57 acres of land in the industrial area of Kausar to run a company but after its failure, a land auction took place in 2014.

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According to the records, UP State Industrial Development Corporation (UPSIDC) had leased 65.57 acres of land to the company in 1986 but when the company was closed down, the Debts Recovery Tribunal got it auctioned in 2014 at Rs 20.10 crore to recover the loan.

The land purchased in the auction was paid by the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust for stamp duty of Rs 1, 50,000.

However, later the land auction process was termed invalid by the UPSIDC after which a Gauriganj SDM Court ordered the return of the land of the Samrat Cycle Factory to UPSIDC. Since then the land is on papers with them. It is still occupied by the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust.

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The Congress chief has, however, always spoke for farmers’ welfare and even promised to waive their loan in his election speeches.

Rahul’s visit to Amethi coincided with the appointment of his sister Priyanka Gandhi as the Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh East, the region in which his Amethi Lok Sabha constituency falls.