Close X
Sunday, November 24, 2024
ADVT 
India

President Calls Geeta 'Symbol Of India-Pakistan Unity'

Darpan News Desk IANS, 27 Oct, 2015 11:27 AM
    A day after returning to India from Pakistan where she was stranded for years, speech and hearing impaired Geeta met President Pranab Mukherjee -- who called her "a symbol of India-Pakistan unity" -- and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and took a ride on Delhi Metro.
     
    "You are the daughter of both our countries, a symbol of India-Pakistan unity. God has listened to your prayers," Mukherjee told the 23-year-old when she called on him at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
     
    A Rashtrapati Bhavan statement said Mukherjee blessed Geeta, a Hindu who strayed into Pakistan when she was around 11 years old in 2003. Pakistan Rangers promptly handed her over to the Edhi Foundation that took care of her since then.
     
    Unable to explain who she was and from where she came, Geeta began living in Pakistan, and grew from a teenager to a young adult.
     
    The president also thanked Bilquis Bano Edhi and the Edhi Foundation for their good work in Pakistan.
     
    Before meeting the president, Geeta met Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, who asked her about her life in Pakistan and how she strayed into that country.
     
    At both meetings, Geeta was accompanied by members of Edhi Foundation.
     
     
    Geeta, who interacted with everyone with the help of a facilitator, later took a ride on Delhi Metro, travelling from the Civil Lines station in the city's north to Patel Chowk station in the heart of the capital.
     
    At the Patel Chowk station, she was taken around the Delhi Metro museum.
     
    On Monday, Geeta flew into New Delhi on Pakistan International Airlines to begin a new life on her home soil.
     
    Among the first people she called on were External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who had taken a keen interest on her return, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
     
    Modi thanked Bilquis Edhi, wife of Karachi-based Edhi Foundation founder Abdul Sattar Edhi, for taking care of Geeta in Pakistan. He also announced a Rs.1 crore rupee donation for the foundation.
     
    On Tuesday, the NGO declined to accept the money.
     
    "Edhi has thanked Modi and politely declined to accept his announced financial help," the Dawn quoted Edhi Foundation spokesman Anwar Kazmi as saying.
     
     
    "What the Edhi family has done is too priceless to be measured but I am happy to announce a contribution of Rs.1 crore for their foundation," Modi had tweeted on Monday.
     
    Edhi Foundation is a social welfare organisation known for its extensive social work.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    India Clears Defence Purchases Worth Over Rs.29,000 Crore

    India Clears Defence Purchases Worth Over Rs.29,000 Crore
    India on Tuesday cleared defence purchases worth over Rs.29,000 crore ($4.5 billion) at a meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC).

    India Clears Defence Purchases Worth Over Rs.29,000 Crore

    Pak High Commision Invites Kashmir Separatists For Eid Milan

    Pak High Commision Invites Kashmir Separatists For Eid Milan
    The Pakistan High Commission in India has invited Hurriyat leaders and other separatists from Kashmir to its Eid Milan party to be held on July 21.

    Pak High Commision Invites Kashmir Separatists For Eid Milan

    Harper Says Canadian Economy In 'Downturn' Due To Negative Global Trends

    Harper Says Canadian Economy In 'Downturn' Due To Negative Global Trends
    PICKERING, Ont. — Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the government will react with "strong fiscal discipline" to the "downturn" in the Canadian economy, which he blamed on the recent downward trends in the global economy.

    Harper Says Canadian Economy In 'Downturn' Due To Negative Global Trends

    Rapes In Tihar Jail: Silence Is The Key

    Rapes In Tihar Jail: Silence Is The Key
    It seems being forced to keep mum despite being sexually assaulted has turned into a bitter reality for many inmates in Tihar Jail.

    Rapes In Tihar Jail: Silence Is The Key

    Rape Not Just India's Fight: 'Daughters Of Mother India' Maker

    Rape Not Just India's Fight: 'Daughters Of Mother India' Maker
    India earned global notoriety after a 23-year-old physiotherapy intern was brutally gangraped in a bus in New Delhi on December 16, 2002. But India is not the only country to be fighting the evil.

    Rape Not Just India's Fight: 'Daughters Of Mother India' Maker

    Man Dead After Dog Attack In Hamilton: Police

    Man Dead After Dog Attack In Hamilton: Police
    The man, who has not been identified, was out walking the canine Wednesday night with another man in a residential neighbourhood just after 11 p.m. when the incident took place, police said.

    Man Dead After Dog Attack In Hamilton: Police