Huge snarls on Meerut E-way as cops block Rahul Gandhi’s route

Thousands of commuters were stranded for hours on Wednesday morning as heavy barricading by Ghaziabad police to block Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from heading to violence-hit Sambhal triggered a massive traffic jam on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) and National Highway-9 (NH-9).

The disruption, which began around 9am, extended for several kilometres on either side of the raod and eased only after Gandhi and other Congress leaders returned to Delhi around 1pm, traffic officials said.

The barricading at UP Gate, a critical transit point connecting areas such as Kaushambi, Vaishali, Indirapuram, and Khoda to Delhi, brought traffic to a standstill. This junction is also a key route for long-distance travellers from Delhi and Ghaziabad heading to Hapur, Moradabad, and Aligarh.

Commuters described the gridlock as “nightmarish,” citing hours of delays, lack of alternative routes, and minimal communication from authorities.

Several commuters expressed frustration at the inconvenience caused by what they saw as political theatrics.

“Politicians have their own agenda and want to create a show on the streets of Delhi, making our lives difficult. I was two hours late for work because of the traffic. If the leaders had to go to Sambhal, they could have easily hired a plane or chopper and saved us the trouble,” said Yogesh Sachdeva, who was en route to his office in Ghaziabad from Delhi.

Another commuter going towards Ghaziabad from Delhi, Shri Harsha, highlighted the impact on emergency services. “There are two large hospitals near the border. An ambulance was stuck in the traffic. These political battles cannot be fought on the streets,” he added.

Meanwhile, others raised concerns about the lack of coordination and preparedness.

“I was stuck since 10am, trying to reach my office in Ghaziabad. The government should have informed the public in advance. There must be many like me who faced trouble due to this massive snarl,” said Sonam (who goes by first name), another commuter.

For families and tourists, the ordeal was equally harrowing.

“We have been stuck in our car for over one and a half hours, and my child is troubled. There is no water here, and we are facing a lot of problems,” said a woman travelling with her child, requesting not to be named.

“It’s crazy... It’s wild. We have not seen anything like this in our country. We asked the police if we could proceed, as we are from Australia and had nothing to do with this. They said no. We are headed to Rishikesh for a holiday trip,” said Dafna, an Australian tourist, who refused to disclose her full name, was stranded on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway with her group.

Meanwhile, ANI reported that some commuters stuck in the snarl raised slogans against Congress’ Rahul Gandhi at Ghazipur borders. Separately, a scuffle broke out between Congress workers and commuters on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway.

Ripple effect on adjacent areas

While commuters faced hours of delay, residents of Indirapuram, located near UP Gate, bore the brunt of traffic moving to internal roads to avoid the mayhem on the highways.

“The township already faces high traffic volumes. Whenever there’s barricading at UP Gate, vehicles flood into Indirapuram to find alternative routes, worsening the congestion on internal roads,” said Mohan Sangwan, a Shakti Khand resident.

Similar issues were reported in nearby Kaushambi, Khoda, and Vaishali, with residents complaining of heavy vehicle inflow into their areas.

Ghaziabad Police attempted to ease the situation by redirecting traffic to alternative routes, including Anand Vihar-Kaushambi and Mohan Nagar, but these areas also saw jams.

“Since Kaushambi has limited capacity, it couldn’t handle the heavy traffic flow. Some vehicles were diverted towards Mohan Nagar,” said Piyush Kumar Singh, additional DCP (Traffic), adding that the traffic police had put up barricading around 9am. The traffic was also diverted to the nearby Anand Vihar-Kaushambi border.

Delhi Police officials said the confusion was caused by restrictions imposed by UP Police.

“Barricading by UP Police at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border and the area around Mahamaya flyover around 10 am led to chaos around Akshardham and Mayur Vihar. We coordinated to redirect traffic, but the highways were fully opened only after the Congress leaders returned to Delhi,” explained a senior Delhi Police officer.

While the traffic chaos disrupted office-goers and residents, its impact on emergency services and essential supplies was a major concern. Vehicles carrying essential goods and ambulances were also stuck in the jam. However, there were no updates on whether priority measures were implemented for their movement.

The district administration in Sambhal had requested neighbouring districts, including Ghaziabad, Amroha, and Bulandshahr, to block Gandhi’s entry into the region. To this end, heavy police deployment, paramilitary forces, water cannons, and anti-riot vehicles were stationed at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. Although the Chilla border between Delhi and Noida remained unaffected, it saw significant security deployment as a precautionary measure.

With inputs from Snehil Sinha and Jignasa Sinha in Delhi