During her visit to Kashmir, Congress President Sonia Gandhi called Kashmiri women as the source of inspiration and courage for the people living in the rest of the country. Sonia Gandhi said this during her address to a massive gathering of women at a function that was held on the banks of Dal Lake in Srinagar on Monday.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, Rajani Patil, Chairperson of the Central Social Welfare Board, G M Saroori, Chairman of State Social Welfare Board and J&K chief Ghulam Nabi Azad were also present there at the function.

Sonia Gandhi said:

I always feel happy when visit Kashmir. Today, I am proud to be among the women of Kashmir. You have faced every challenge and have emerged as a symbol of resistance against terror.

She said that in the last 20 years of terrorism in state, the Kashmiri women suffered a lot. Now, this is the duty of the state to heal their wounds. This is state’s responsibility to bring the innocent people back to peace.

Gandhi, at the same time, added that the UPA and the state Governments have taken several steps to create peace in the state but there is a need of more such steps to be taken to put the state on the path of development.

She praised the Manmohan Singh government at center and Ghulam Nabi Azad in state for their entire commendable job in areas of infrastructure development and in implementing welfare schemes.

While addressing the Kashmiri women, Sonia said that education and availability of opportunities are the two pillars for women empowerment in the state. She also praised the role of self-help groups and voluntary organizations for supporting people to achieve such objectives.

Read