"Why does State Govt not want opposition to visit Sambhal?": Congress' Pramod Tiwari

Speaking to ANI, Tiwari asked, "What is the district administration hiding? Why does the state government not want the opposition to visit Sambhal? They should allow the delegation to visit Sambhal."

"A Samajwadi Party leader said that the opposition, of whatever party will help with calming down the area, and instill confidence in the region. But the delegation has been asked to stop and we will stop, we just want to cooperate, not confrontation," the Congress leader said.

A Samajwadi Party delegation was scheduled to visit the Sambhal area today, however the delegation was allegedly denied permission by the district administration.

"We do not provoke anyone. The language that incites is used by Keshav Prasad Maurya ji. If the press can visit there, how will people get incited if I say the same thing? They should have given me a notice, but without any notice, they deployed police outside my residence. We will go to the party office and decide," Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey told ANI.

Pandey said earlier that he got a call from the Sambhal District Magistrate to not visit the area.

"They (administration) should have given me a notice as per the rules that I cannot go there, but no written notice was given. They only talk on the telephone. They deployed the police. The Justice Commission is going there, media people are going there, will there be any unrest if we go there? This government is deliberately stopping us to hide all its work," the UP LoP added.

The senior SP leader said that the Sambhal DM asked him not to come till December 10.Tensions in Sambhal have remained tense since clashes on November 19, after a court-ordered ASI survey of the Jama Masjid. Security is still heightened in the area on Saturday. The survey followed a petition filed by some persons in the local court, claiming that the site of the mosque was previously a Harihar temple. (ANI)