‘After 42 yrs, a Gandhi family member visits shrine’
Gopal Sharma
JAMMU, Sept 9: Former All India Congress Committee (AICC) president, Rahul Gandhi who arrived here today on a two-day visit, paid obeisance at Katra Mata Vaishnodevi shrine this evening.
Gandhi along with senior AICC leader and Incharge J&K Affairs of the party, Rajni Patil, JKPCC president, GA Mir, IYC chief Srinivas, vice presidents Mula Ram and Raman Bhalla, senior leaders Jugal Kishore and Th Balbir Singh besides many others moved on-foot from Katra base camp under tight security arrangements and reached Bhawan in Trikuta hills of district Reasi at around 6 pm.
Rahul Gandhi along with several senior leaders paid obeisance at the holy shrine during Aarti late this evening. He sat on the ground with the common pilgrims in the main hall in front of the entrance of the cave shrine for over an hour during ‘live Aarti’. After staying at the Bhawan for some time, Gandhi along with other leaders left for base camp Katra at around 10 pm.
During his on-foot journey, Gandhi interacted with many pilgrims and inquired about the arrangements by Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine Board and their experience during pilgrimage, a Congress leader accompanying Gandhi said.
Earlier, the former Congress chief was accorded a rousing reception at the Jammu Airport by party workers and leaders led by JKPCC chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir. After garlanding profusely, he was taken straightway to Katra from Airport in a decorated vehicle, followed by long cavalcade of security and Congress leaders and workers. He was received at Suketar by the Congress activists led by former MLA Nagrota, Thakur Shiv Dev Singh. Gandhi stopped there for some time and interacted with the Congress leader and other activists. Another Youth Congress group accorded reception to their leader at Jagti near IIT.
At Katra base camp, several senior leaders led by former Minister Jugal Kishore Sharma, DCC Reasi president Rajesh Sadhotra, PYC chief Uday Chib besides Cong Seva Dal activists and others received him and accorded warm reception. Katra and Bhawan police had made elaborate security arrangements for the smooth pilgrimage of the top Congress leader.
“Rahul Gandhi had reached Katra around 2 am and started on-foot journey to the cave shrine along with other Congress leaders to pay obeisance to the deity at around 3 pm,” Mir said, adding, “We have not scheduled any political engagements on the first day of his tour.”
On Friday, Gandhi will interact with party delegates at JK Resorts (near Marble Market) in Jammu’s Trikuta Nagar Extension area from 11 am to 12.30 pm. After an interaction with the senior party leaders over lunch at a local hotel, he will return to Delhi by a flight at 3.30 pm, Mir added.
This is Rahul Gandhi’s second visit to Jammu and Kashmir within a month. He was in Srinagar on August 9 and 10, where he inaugurated the party’s new office and also attended the marriage function of GA Mir’s son. He had also visited the famous shrine of Mata Kheer Bhawani at Tullamulla in Ganderbal district during his recent Kashmir visit.
A senior Congress leader revealed that after Late Indira Gandhi, Rahul is the next in the Gandhi family who visited Mata Vaishnodevi shrine after 42 years and that too on-foot. After emergency in the country, Congress was badly defeated. Many loyalists of Indira Gandhi left the party. After that a shattered Indira had visited Mata Vaishnodevi Shrine and she had offered prayers by sitting close to the deity and wailing there alone for some time. She had offered special prayers at the cave shrine.
“After returning to Delhi, Indira Gandhi formed Congress (I) with her supporters and again regained power and became the Prime Minister. Then after her victory, she visited Mata Vaishnodevi shrine during 1979 and offered prayers,” the Congress leader disclosed.
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