SRINAGAR: Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi took a boat ride in Nigeen Lake after reaching Srinagar on Saturday. She will join Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who reached Srinagar on Friday on a three-day personal visit.
“Jammu and Kashmir is his home…he loves people here and this land, so he wants to spend two days here in peace.
This is not a political visit, it is completely personal and private visit,” Vikar Rasool Wani, president of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee, told reporters. “Rahul ji arrived in Srinagar on Friday evening from his week-long tour of Ladakh,” a senior Congress leader told news agency PTI. He said the Wayanad MP will be joined by his mother on Saturday.
Rahul’s sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with her husband Robert Vadra, is also likely to join the duo, the party leader said. Rahul is staying at a houseboat in Nigeen Lake and the family is likely to stay at a hotel in Rainawari area on Saturday. The senior party leader added that the Gandhi family has old memories of the hotel.After two nights, they are likely to visit Gulmarg, he added. The leader, however, said no political engagements are scheduled for the family during the visitPradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Vikar Rasool Wani said on Friday.However, Wani said, the two senior leaders will have no political engagement or meeting with any party leaders in Srinagar during the “family tour.” Rahul has been in the Union Territory of Ladakh the past one week and will be leaving for Srinagar after addressing a public rally in Kargil Friday morning, the JKPCC president told PTI.

. “It is a completely personal, family visit and no political engagement or meeting with any party leaders will happen,” he added.Rahul has been in the Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh the past one week and reached Srinagar after addressing a public rally in Kargil Friday morning.
Rahul reached Ladakh on August 17, his first visit to the region since it was granted UT status after being carved out from Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019. The erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was also turned into a Union Territory with its special status under Article 370 revoked.
Over the past week, Rahul has gone around almost all famous places in the region, including Pangong lake, Nubra valley, Khardungla top, Lamayuru and Zanskar, on his motorcycle before reaching Kargil on Thursday.
Another Congress leader earlier said Rahul would be reaching Sonamarg in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district from Kargil in the afternoon before moving to Srinagar where he will be staying for two nights at a houseboat and a hotel.. Party sources said that Rahul Gandhi is on a two-day private visit to the Valley as J&K is his “home” and he loves the local people. The sources also said that the family will visit the Gulmarg ski resort on Sunday.
Earlier on Friday, PTI reported citing a senior party leader that Rahul Gandhi has chosen to reside in a houseboat situated on Nigeen Lake, while the family is anticipated to shift to a hotel in the Rainawari locality on Saturday.
Notably, this hotel holds sentimental value for the Gandhi family due to past associations. Following a stay spanning two nights, there are plans for them to explore Gulmarg. However, the leader clarified that the family’s visit does not encompass any political commitments or engagements .Rahul’s sister Priyanka Gandhi, along with her husband Robert Wadra, is also likely to join the duo, PTI reported citing a party leader.After spending the past week in the Union Territory of Ladakh, Rahul Gandhi made his way to Srinagar following his address at a public rally in Kargil on Friday morning.
Rahul commenced his visit to Ladakh on August 17, marking his initial expedition to the region since it acquired the status of a Union Territory, following its separation from Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019. This transition also involved the reconfiguration of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state into a Union Territory, accompanied by the revocation of its special status under Article 370.Throughout the preceding week, Rahul undertook a motorcycle journey, covering several renowned locales in the area, such as Pangong Lake, Nubra Valley, Khardungla Top, Lamayuru, and Zanskar, before concluding his journey in Kargil on Thursday.
As per a statement from another Congress leader, Rahul Gandhi’s itinerary included a plan to travel from Kargil to Sonamarg, located in the central part of Kashmir’s Ganderbal district. Following this, he was expected to proceed to Srinagar, where he would spend two nights—one at a houseboat and the other at a hotel.
(Bureau Report With Agencies Inputs).

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