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Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi has announced that he will take full responsibility for the education of 22 children from Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district who lost their parents or the family's sole breadwinner during the cross-border shelling by Pakistan in Operation Sindoor. The assistance will cover all educational expenses until the children complete their graduation.
Jammu and Kashmir Congress chief Tariq Hamid Karra said the first instalment of financial aid will be released this week to ensure there is no disruption in the children’s schooling. He stated that a survey was conducted after Gandhi’s visit in May, and the names of the children were finalised following cross-verification with official government records.
During his visit to Poonch in May, Gandhi met affected families and children. He visited Christ Public School, where two students—12-year-old twins Urba Fatima and Zain Ali—were killed in the shelling. Speaking to students, Gandhi said, “I feel very, very proud of you. You miss your little friends. I’m very sorry about that. Now, you feel a little bit of danger and a little frightened, but don’t worry; everything will go back to normal. Your way of responding to this should be to study really hard, play really hard and make a lot of friends in school.”
Poonch district was among the worst-affected areas during the escalation, which followed the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 people. Several civilians, including children, were injured in the shelling. One of the casualties was Vihaan Bhargav, a young boy who died from shrapnel injuries while his family was trying to flee the area.
Operation Sindoor was launched by India in retaliation to the Pahalgam attack. Indian forces targeted nine terror hubs in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and neutralised over 100 terrorists. The operation concluded with an understanding on cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan on May 10.
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