Several Members of Parliament on Friday visited Mawar Langate in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district, the residence of Baramulla MP Engineer Rashid, to offer condolences and express solidarity with the bereaved family.
The father of Lok Sabha MP and Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) chief Engineer Rashid passed away at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, earlier this month after a prolonged illness. He was 85.
In a statement issued on Friday, the AIP said the parliamentary delegation included MPs Umesh Bahubhai Patel and Sudhakar Singh, along with other political leaders from different states.
The visiting MPs interacted with family members, party leaders and local residents gathered at the residence, the party said.
According to the statement, the MPs said there was “no dearth of voices across the country who genuinely feel the pain and sufferings of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”
They maintained that democratic engagement and sincere dialogue were essential for lasting peace and reconciliation in the region.
MP Sudhakar Singh from Bihar said there was “no doubt that the people of Kashmir have suffered immensely and their voices must be heard with sincerity, dignity and seriousness,” the AIP said.
He appreciated the consistent concern shown by Engineer Rashid in Parliament regarding political and human rights issues in Jammu and Kashmir.
The party further quoted Singh as saying that the Modi Government, by not engaging meaningfully with the people of Jammu and Kashmir, was deepening the sense of alienation.
He also demanded the immediate release of Engineer Rashid, saying his continued incarceration was weakening the bridge between New Delhi and Kashmir and preventing him from serving the people who had overwhelmingly elected him.
The visiting MPs also interacted with people from different walks of life and assured them that the people of India were not enemies of Kashmiris.
They further said that all commitments and agreements forming the basis of the relationship between New Delhi and the people of Jammu and Kashmir must be respected and honoured in letter and spirit, the statement added.
