Congress postpones programme to felicitate new Lok Sabha MPs from UP

Congress postponed its programme to felicitate the newly-elected Lok Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh that was scheduled for Friday.

UP Congress chief Ajay Rai told PTI that the programme has been postponed but did not give any reason for the postponement.

Party sources, however, said that they did not want the programme to be held in Lucknow on the day senior party leader Rahul Gandhi visited Aligarh and Hathras to meet the family members of the stampede that killed 121 people.

The Congress, which had contested the recently-concluded Lok Sabha election with the Samajwadi Party, has won six seats from UP, which sends 80 MPs to the Lower House -- the highest for any state.

Rai said that a fresh date for the programme will be decided soon. All party candidates who had contested the elections will be called for the programme, he said.

Rahul Gandhi, who won the Lok Sabha elections from Rae Bareli seat, had earlier this morning visited the families of the stampede in Aligarh and Hathras.

Before Rahul Gandhi, Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency was represented by her mother Sonia Gandhi for over two decades.

Congress's KL Sharma won from Amethi, defeating Union minister Smriti Irani. UP Congress chief Ajay Rai contested in Varanasi, and came runner-up behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was elected for the third time from the seat.

Rai had lost the election by a margin of over 152,000 votes.