Jammu, May 23: A five-member delegation of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Friday visited Rajouri, met cross-border shelling-affected people and the injured at GMC hospital. The delegation said it was deeply moved by the sufferings of border residents.
Speaking to reporters outside GMC Rajouri, TMC leader Sagarika Ghose said they had seen the human tragedies firsthand in the border areas of Rajouri and Poonch.
“We, the five-member delegation of public representatives from Bengal, Derek O’Brien, Mohammad Nadeem-ul-Haq, Manas Bhuia, Mamta Thakur, and myself, Sagarika Ghose, have been in the border areas for the last two days. Yesterday (Thursday) we were in Poonch; today (Friday) we have come to Rajouri, and we are at GMC Hospital, Rajouri,” she said.
“We are witnessing the human cost of what has happened over the last weeks, how the people living in border villages, right on the edge of our country, are the most vulnerable and also the most neglected,” Ghose added.
The TMC leader said the delegation came to GMC Rajouri to listen to the stories of the victims. “We saw patient Imtiaz Ahmed, a labourer who lost his hands and can no longer work or earn. He has three small children and is helpless due to the injuries he has suffered,” she said. “We also met 12-year-old Rafia, who lies in bed with a leg completely damaged. She cannot run anymore, she cannot go to school. These are the human tragedies we are witnessing firsthand.”
Sagarika added. “We have come to offer condolences, sympathy, and empathy. We have come to share love, our full-hearted love for all the people here.”
The TMC leader questioned the lack of protection for the people in these areas: “Why have they been neglected? Why are they not better protected? Why must those who are defenceless and on the front lines of cross-border shelling suffer such injuries?”
“Our hearts are broken. Today, our collective hearts are broken. We return with broken hearts after seeing the suffering of the people here,” she said.
Ghose said the delegation was there to offer any help and cooperation possible with the Jammu and Kashmir government. “All of us have experienced the pain and suffering, the kind of loss that families here have endured. We have learned about Urwa Fatima, Zain Ali, Rajvansh, and Amarjeet Singh,” she said. “We have come here and seen the sorrow and grief of their families firsthand. This is a journey of empathy, sympathy, and solidarity. We want to tell every family here, you are not alone. We are standing with you. The people of Bengal are standing with you. The people of India are standing with you.”
The TMC MP said it has been one month since the Pahalgam terror attack, but added that every life is precious.
“We are here for you. India is here for you. Bengal is here for you. We will always stand with you,” she added.
Derek O’Brien, TMC MP in Rajya Sabha, said they had been in Poonch on Thursday, then in Srinagar, and later in Rajouri. “We are deeply moved. What we have seen in the last two hours is truly heartbreaking.”
“We can imagine how you are feeling, because this has happened in your homes, in Poonch. It is not easy in public life to speak to grieving families. Mamata Di (Banerjee) has sent us here,” he said. “We are only here to tell these families, we are with you.”
