Press gallery collapses at Rahul Gandhi's rally; 1 injured

A press gallery reportedly collapsed in the ground at Panchgram in Hailakandi district where Congress president Rahul Gandhi attended a programme on Tuesday.

According to sources, the incident took place around 12:30 pm this afternoon when the press gallery suddenly collapsed leaving one injured. The injured person is a correspondent with Samayik Prasanga in Hailakandi.

Immediately after the incident, Congress leaders including former minister Gautam Roy, Karimganj North legislator Kamalakhya Dey Purkayastha, former Borkhola legislator Rumi Nath and Lakhipur legislator Rajdeep Goala came down from the dais and apologised to the reporters.

A large number of people, who had come to the venue to attend the event, entered the press gallery due to which the gallery could not withstand the heavyweight resulting in the collapse, sources said.

Volunteers present near the spot said inclement weather had affected the preparation of the gallery as a result of which the incident happened.