Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi is likely to visit Jammu on September 9 and September 10, likely to offer prayers at Mata Vaishno Devi temple.
This will be Gandhi’s second time in a month. Earlier on August 10, he had visited the Hazratal Dargah along with Kheer Bhavani Temple, the centre of faith of Kashmiri Pandits in Ganderbal.
Gandhi has become active in the Union Territory at a time when elections are due in the state. After the abrogation of Article 370, the central government had banned political tours for a long time.
According to Congress sources, Rahul Gandhi will encourage party workers in Jammu division. During this, he will also attend the court of Maa Vaishno Devi situated on Trikuta mountain in Reasi district.
Earlier on the issue of Kashmir, Gandhi had earlier said, “Ghulam Nabi Azadji asked me to raise the issue of Kashmir in Parliament. But I want to tell you we are not allowed to speak there. There are many issues like Pegasus, corruption and unemployment that I want to raise but we are not given a chance to speak.”
He said, “Today it is not only J&K but every institution, like the judiciary, the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha, that is being attacked. The media is not reflecting the truth… they are being suppressed, threatened. They are scared. They fear losing jobs if they report facts.”
“Statehood (for J&K) should be restored and the democratic process – that is, election (to the J&K Assembly) should be started,” he stressed.