LK Advani's rath yatra denied permission to hold rally at Mughalsarai; faces technical snags

PATNA/LUCKNOW: BJP leader LK Advani's rath yatra faced technical and political snags on Wednesday. First, his air-conditioned rath's exhaust malfunctioned, resulting in release of carbon monoxide and compelling leaders Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley to alight midway.

Then, at Koilwar of Bhojpur district, the rath was damaged when the upper portion scraped against an antique iron rail-road bridge over the River Sone. "A portion of the bus was damaged when its roof crashed into the bridge, which is not very high," a police officer said.

Later in the day, Uttar Pradesh authorities denied him permission to hold a rally at a railway ground at Mughalsarai town.

According to police, the rear windscreen of Advani's bus was damaged and the front windscreen scratched in the 30-minute hold-up as the bus's roof scraped against the British-era iron bridge and the vehicle was stuck. BJP workers, local administration and people joined hands to rescue Advani's rath from under the bridge. The bus also hit a tree when it was approaching a venue for public meeting in Ara. Another bus was finally making its way from Bangalore to enable Advani continue with his yatra without further glitches.

But the UP administration was in no mood to oblige. Chandauli District Magistrate Vijay Kumar Tripathi denied permission to a rally citing objections from the Railways under whose jurisdiction the ground falls.