Mayhem engulfs Meerut E-way

Thousands of commuters faced hours-long gridlock on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) and National Highway-9 (NH-9) on Wednesday morning as the Ghaziabad Police placed barricades to block Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's convoy headed to the violence-hit Sambhal district.

- Peeyush Khandelwal

The disruption, which began around 9am, eased only after Gandhi and other Congress leaders returned to Delhi around Ipm, officials said. The barricades at UP Gate, a critical transit point connecting Kaushambi, Vaishali, Indirapuram, and Khoda to Delhi, triggered massive jams, leaving commuters stranded for hours. The junction is also a key route for long-distance travellers heading towards Hapur, Moradabad and Aligarh.

Several commuters expressed frustration at the inconvenience caused. "Politicians have their own agenda and want to create a show on streets of Delhi, making our lives difficult. I was two hours late for work. If the leaders had to go to Sambhal, they could have easily hired a plane or chopper," said Yogesh Sachdeva, who was going to his office in Ghaziabad from Delhi.

Another commuter going towards Ghaziabad from Delhi, Shri Harsha, said, "There are two large hospitals near the border.