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We Are With You, Sonia Gandhi tells Kashmiris

Rahul Gandhi Leads a Dharna NEW DELHI: Nine months after entering Parliament, the Congress MP from Amethi, Shri Rahul Gandhi, made his presence felt within the sprawling premises for the first time on 3 March. He led young MPs of the party in a protest against the frequent adjournments of Parliament that have consumed 162 hours and Rs. 52 crores since the 14th Lok Sabha was constituted. Shri Gandhi along with a score of first-time MPs sat on a dharna in front of the Gandhi statue before Parliament met for the day to protest the frequent disruptions. Later briefing mediapersons after the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day, he said: "We wanted to send out a message to our elders in Parliament that if you want to protest, do so through discussion." Shri Gandhi said: "We have worked out that Rs. 52 crores has already been wasted by the adjournments. Each MP gets Rs. 2 crores annually under the Member of parliament Local Area Development Scheme and we use it carefully as the electorate has various demands and we need to address each one of them. As many as 26 constituencies can be covered under the MPLADS with Rs.52 crores." Shri Gandhi made out a case for using Parliament as a forum for channeling dissent. "Do not disrupt and destroy the process. We want discussion, and we want to learn from our senior leaders. Parliament is the temple of democracy, and it should not be desecrated. Debate and discussion, that's what the temple of democracy is all about." The Dausa MP, Shri Sachin Pilot's reaction to remarks on the Congress disrupting proceedings when it was in Opposition was that "history is testimony to the fact that our party has registered its protest by walk-outs, not disruptions." Other MPs who participated in the protest included Shri Jitin Prasada, Shri Naveen Jindal, Shri Sandeep Dikshit, Shri Ajay Maken, Shri D. Purandeswari, Shri S Tejashwini and Shri Lal Singh besides Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia.

JAMMU: The United Progressive Alliance chairperson and Congress president, Smt. Sonia Gandhi said on 23 February that the entire country supported the people of Jammu and Kashmir in their hour of need and that the Centre would provide succour to those affected by the recent avalanches.

Smt. Gandhi was talking to reporters alongwith the Defence Minister, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, at the end of their survey of the affected areas.

"This is a difficult time for the people in the State's remote and hilly areas. At the same time I want to assure everyone that the entire country is behind the people of Jammu and Kashmir in these tough times.

"I have myself taken stock of the situation. There has been devastation and a lot is to be done. Not only have many lives been lost but also a lot of infrastructure has been damaged. Steps are being taken to restore normality which would take some time," Smt. Gandhi said.

Earlier, Smt. Gandhi and Shri Mukherjee were forced to cut short their survey after the Indian Air Force helicopter carrying them was unable to land at the Khanabal headquarters of the Rashtriya Rifles in Anantnag district due to bad weather. They wound-up their tour after visiting Qazigund in South Kashmir and Poonch in Jammu.

They were accompanied by the Chief Minister, Shri Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad, the All India Congress Committee general secretary, Smt. Ambika Soni, and the Army Chief, Gen. J.J. Singh.

Appreciating the role of the armed forces, Shri Mukherjee said they had acted spontaneously in a crisis by providing relief to the affected people and carrying out rescue and search operations in remote areas.

On behalf of the govt. and the people of the country, I want to express solidarity with the people of the state who have suffered a huge loss of life and property in the natural calamity," he said.

Gen. Singh assured the dignitaries that all possible measures would be taken to tackle the situation. "We will fly snow-scooters to the affected areas for shifting the injured to the hospitals. The Army will also shift nurses and doctors to the affected areas," he said.

Instructors from the high-altitude warfare school at Gulmarg and the mountaineering institutes in Darjeeling and Manali would be brought in to lead the relief operations.