After a week-long tour of Ladakh, Rahul Gandhi is arriving on a two-day visit to Srinagar on Friday. His mother and former All India Congress Committee (AICC) President, Sonia Gandhi will join him on Saturday during the visit.
Gandhi, who has been in Ladakh since Thursday last week, will reach Sonamarg in Ganderbal, 80 km from Srinagar, at 2:00 pm.
Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Vikar Rasool Wani will receive Gandhi on his arrival from Kargil, said sources.
He will later travel to Srinagar by road, where his mother and former All India Congress Committee (AICC) President, Sonia Gandhi, will join him for a two-day private tour.
The Congress leader and MP is likely to spend one night on a houseboat at Nigeen Lake in Srinagar and another night in a local hotel in the same area. A JKPCC leader stressed that Gandhi will not be holding any meetings with party leaders in Srinagar during his stay over the next two days.
This is his first visit to Kashmir since the culmination of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in January of this year in Srinagar.
During his one-week stay in Ladakh, Rahul celebrated his father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s birth anniversary with the local youth on Sunday at Pangong Lake, his father’s favourite destination.
During his visit, Rahul has gone around places including Nubra valley, Khardungla top, Lamayuru and Zanskar on his motorcycle before reaching Kargil.
After interacting with the people in Ladakh, he said that the people in Ladakh are unhappy with the current status after the abrogation of Article 370 and want a political representation.
Ladakh comprising Leh and Kargil districts was separated from Jammu and Kashmir and made a union territory by the BJP after the abrogation of Article 370. “There have been numerous grievances. The residents are dissatisfied with their current status,’’ said Gandhi. “They desire representation. There is widespread concern about unemployment and inflation,”he added.
On Tuesday, the Congress announced that Rahul Gandhi's Ladakh Yatra was a continuation of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, as his visit to the Union Territory fulfilled a commitment made to a delegation during his nationwide journey.
