Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra visited landslides-hit Wayanad in Kerala.
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday visited Kerala's Wayanad - Mr Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency - and offered messages of support to people there struggling to recover from devastating landslides that have killed nearly 300 so far with another 200 still missing.
To underline the emotional impact of their visit Rahul Gandhi told reporters "I feel how I felt when my father (ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, assassinated in May 1991) died".
"I remember what I felt when my father died. But here people have not just lost a father... they have lost families... brothers, sisters, mothers, and fathers. I know what I felt (when his father was killed) and this is much worse than that. It is not one person suffering but thousands."
"We owe people here all our respect and affection, and should be standing with them at this time. I am very proud that the whole nation is focused on Wayanad and is helping," he said.
READ | Kerala Landslide Deaths Rise To 291, Nearly 200 Still Missing
Mr Gandhi also responded firmly to political jabs over the landslides.
"I don't think this is the time or place to discuss political issues. People here need help. I am not interested in politics at this moment. My focus is on the people of Wayanad."
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra - who will make her electoral debut from Wayanad, after her brother surrenders that Lok Sabha seat in favour of Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh - highlighted more agony.
"We met a boy who was holding on for six hours... trying to save his whole family but could not. He could only save his grandmother. We spent the day meeting people who suffered," she said.
"It is an immense tragedy," Mrs Gandhi Vadra said, "We can only imagine the kind of pain the people here are suffering. We are only here to give as much comfort and support as we can."
She also welcomed offers of aid from neighbouring states.
Karnataka, where the Congress is in power, has offered financial and material aid, and is allowing unrestricted passage of emergency supplies via the Bandisur border check post.
Tamil Nadu, where the Congress is allied with the ruling DMK, has offered Rs 5 crore aid and manpower in the form of firefighters, doctors, and disaster response personnel.
"Tomorrow, we plan to sit down and chalk out how we can help... especially children who are left on their own now," Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said.
Himachal Pradesh Cloudbursts
Priyanka Gandhi also highlighted the devastation in Himachal Pradesh, another Congress-ruled state, where two people have died and at least 53 others are still missing after cloudbursts this morning.
READ | Cloudbursts In Himachal's Shimla, Kullu And Mandi, 2 Dead, Over 50 Missing
"There has been a big tragedy in Himachal Pradesh as well. Perhaps over 40 have passed away in a very similar situation... our condolences for them too to get over this tragedy," she said.
Both Mr Gandhi and Mrs Gandhi Vadra underlined the need for political unity at this time.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Visit Chooralmala
Earlier today they visited the Chooralmala area in Wayanad, which was hit by a massive landslide early Tuesday, causing extensive destruction and loss of lives.
The flood of horrific videos circulating online - of powerful torrents of debris-strewn mud and boulders flattening everything, roads, bridges, and villages, in its path - only hint at the scale of the tragedy. Even high-res satellite images present only an idea of the destruction in Kerala.
READ | Satellite Images Show Devastation From Landslides In Kerala's Wayanad
One set of before-and-after images, shared by the Indian Space Research Organisation, suggests 86,000 sq m of land slipped and the debris flowed for 8 km along a river.
The debris flow widened the course of the river - the Iruvaniphuza - causing it to flood.
The Kerala government has launched multiple rescue and relief operations, with support from the Army, state and national disaster response forces, and emergency and medical teams.
Ominously, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan said rescuers have yet to reach the first settlement hit by the landslide, and that it would be weeks before all the dead are counted.
READ |"Haven't Even Reached...": Kerala Governor's Grim Wayanad Warning
The tragedy has not stopped some Bharatiya Janata Party leaders from political attacks. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya claimed Rahul Gandhi has never raised the issue of landslides in his constituency.
The centre, however, has said it will offer all assistance. Union Minister George Kurian, who visited Wayanad this week, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is closely monitoring the situation.
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