Mamata Banerjee leads candle light march, says terrorists have no religion

Kolkata, Feb 16: A candle light march was held in Kolkata on Saturday to pay homage to martyrs of the Pulwama terrorist attack in which 40 jawans were killed. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a candle light march and said the country stands united by its brave jawans.

The march was held from Hazra crossing in south Kolkata to Mahatma Gandhi's statue in the Mayo Road area. In one of the deadliest terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, at least 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed and many injured on Thursday when a Jaish-e-Mohammed suicide bomber rammed a vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives into their bus in Pulwama district.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief condemned the attack and said terrorists "have no religion or caste".

"The country stands united. We are one and we unitedly stand by our brave jawans. Terrorists are terrorists. They have no religion, no caste," Banerjee said after the march in which she along with various other TMC leaders was seen carrying candles.

People walked silently along with TMC activists who carried national flags and posters with the names of all the 40 CRPF personnel killed in the attack. After the procession reached Gandhi's statue, Banerjee offered her respects and prayed for the those killed in the attack. A minute's silence was observed as a mark of respect to the bravehearts.

OneIndia News with PTI inputs