Priyanka, Rahul Gandhi Visit Pulwama Martyrs’ Families in UP

Rahul Gandhi consoles family members of slain jawans.

(Photo: The Quint)

Congress President Rahul Gandhi and General Secretary in-charge of eastern Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday, 20 February, attended a prayer meeting of CRPF jawan Amit Kumar Kori in UP’s Shamli. Kori was killed in the recent Pulwama terror attack. The leaders also visited the residence of martyred jawan Pradeep Kumar.

Congress General Secretary in-charge of western Uttar Pradesh Jyotiraditya Scindia was also present.

Rahul and Priyanka were seen consoling the members of the bereaved families.

Speaking on this occasion, Rahul said, “In these moments of grief, we are with you... His (Kori’s) father told us that he is sad, but at the same time proud (of his son). And I want to say that we are sad, but at the same time we are proud that a family of this country gave love to its son and educated him. The son gave his love, body and heart to the country. We can never forget this,” he said.

Priyanka Gandhi consoles family mambers of slain jawans.

Rahul Gandhi pays homage to slain jawans.

Priyanka Gandhi pays homage to slain jawans.

"My sister said that in a way our father (erstwhile Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi) had also met the same fate. We understand your pain and agony. We are here to sit only for five minutes with you and to tell all of you that we want to share your grief," he added.

The Congress president said India is a country of bravehearts and no power in the world can push it backward.

"From the bottom of our heart and on behalf of the country, I thank you, your son and the entire family," Rahul said.

"This is one country. This is a country for everyone (of us) and this is a country of love and brotherhood. This is the message of India," he added.

Forty CRPF personnel were killed on 14 February, when a Jaish-e-Mohammed suicide bomber, in one of the deadliest terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, rammed a vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives into their bus in Pulwama district.

Among the CRPF personnel killed in the attack, 12 hailed from Uttar Pradesh, including two from Shamli.

Rahul, Priyanka’s Pit Stop at a Dhaba

Enroute the martyr’s house, the Congress leaders went to a roadside dhaba in Kairana in Uttar Pradesh.

Seeing the Gandhi convoy stopping at the Shiv Shakti Dhaba near the Yamuna Bridge, a large number people made a beeline to see them. Rahul Gandhi obliged the youngsters by posing for a selfie.

While Rahul Gandhi and party leaders Raj Babbar and Jyotiraditya Scindia had fritters and sipped tea, Priyanka Gandhi, seated nearby, chatted with some women and their children.

Picking up a child on her lap, Priyanka Gandhi asked if she went to school. The response was in the negative.

"Why don't you send her to school?" Priyanka Gandhi asked the mother, who said she couldn't afford to get the girl admitted in a school.

Interacting with other women, Priyanka Gandhi asked about their problems and promised to redress their grievances.

(With inputs from from PTI and IANS)