Rahul Gandhi unhurt after convoy vehicles collide on Purvanchal Expressway
The Leader of the Opposition was heading to a Sultanpur defamation hearing when cars trailing in the motorcade collided after sudden braking.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi escaped unhurt on Monday morning when several vehicles in his motorcade collided along the Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh, police officials said. Gandhi was travelling to Sultanpur to appear before a local court in a criminal defamation case dating back to 2018.
The incident took place around 10:15 am in the Haliyapur police circle of Sultanpur district. According to local police, a private car towards the front of the trailing group, carrying local Congress leaders, suddenly applied its brakes for an unspecified reason. The abrupt stop caused four following cars and an ambulance attached to the motorcade to bump into one another in a chain reaction.
What happened on the expressway
Emergency personnel and escorting highway units responded immediately. Police confirmed that the impact was minor and that Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was completely unharmed inside his secure vehicle.
"The incident was not serious and no major injuries were reported," a senior police officer stated, confirming that the convoy was cleared to resume its trip shortly after security teams inspected the vehicles. State police escorts accompanied the motorcade throughout the transit, ensuring traffic flow along the corridor remained orderly.
The Sultanpur defamation case
Gandhi was en route to Sultanpur for scheduled court proceedings concerning remarks made six years ago. The defamation complaint was originally lodged on 4 August 2018 by Vijay Mishra, a local politician and former chairman of the Sultanpur District Cooperative Bank.
The grievance stemmed from remarks Gandhi directed against then BJP president Amit Shah during an election rally in Bengaluru in the run-up to the 2018 Karnataka Assembly polls. Gandhi appeared in person before the Sultanpur court in 2023 to secure bail. The court had originally scheduled the pronouncement of its order for 13 October, before deferring the proceedings to 26 October.
Security at the court complex
Authorities in Sultanpur put tight security arrangements in place across the district court premises ahead of Gandhi's scheduled arrival. Barricades and extra police deployment were posted around the courtroom perimeter to maintain public order and handle party cadres gathering along the entry corridors.
Following the expressway incident, the convoy made its way toward the court complex without further interruption, arriving slightly after 11:15 am under comprehensive administrative escort.
Key numbers
| What | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Time of expressway incident | Around 10:15 am | Uttar Pradesh Police |
| Vehicles involved in trailing collision | Four cars and one ambulance | District authorities and police |
| Date of original defamation complaint | 4 August 2018 | Sultanpur court records |
In this story
| Name | Role in the story |
|---|---|
| Purvanchal Expressway | High-speed corridor in Uttar Pradesh where the motorcade collision occurred |
| Rahul Gandhi | Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha whose convoy was involved in a collision |
| Sultanpur | District in Uttar Pradesh where the court hearing took place |
