Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], May 22 (ANI): TMC MP Sagarika Ghose emphasised that a five-member Trinamool Congress (TMC) delegation of public representatives from Bengal have come to Kashmir on a journey of 'solidarity, empathy, and sympathy.'

Sagarika Ghose asserted that the border villages of Jammu and Kashmir have suffered the most, and the delegation has come to tell the people that they are not alone. She stated that the border villages must not be 'ignored,' and they must get the attention and relief and rehabilitation they deserve.

'We, a five-member delegation of public representatives from Bengal, have come to Kashmir on a journey of solidarity, empathy, and sympathy. The border villages of Jammu and Kashmir have suffered the most... We have come to tell the people of border villages that they are not alone... Our voyage here reflects our commitment to an inclusive India where every citizen's needs are cared for and attended to. The border villages must not be ignored. They must get the attention, the relief, and rehabilitation they deserve', she told reporters in Srinagar.

A five-member delegation consisting of TMC MPs Derek O'Brien, Md Nadimul Haque, Sagarika Ghose, Mamata Bala Thakur, and West Bengal Minister Manas Ranjan Bhunia arrived in Srinagar at the residence of National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah. The delegation also met Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

The delegation will visit Srinagar, Poonch, and Rajouri from 21 May to 23 May to meet people affected by cross-border shelling by Pakistan in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor.

India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 as a decisive military response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed. Indian Armed Forces targeted terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, leading to the death of over 100 terrorists affiliated with terror outfits like the Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen.

After the attack, Pakistan retaliated with cross-border shelling across the Line of Control and Jammu and Kashmir as well as attempted drone attacks along the border regions, following which India launched a coordinated attack and damaged radar infrastructure, communication centres and airfields across 11 airbases in Pakistan.

After this, on May 10, an understanding of the cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan was announced. (ANI)