PDP leader joins NC in presence of Farooq Abdullah

Jammu, Apr 11: A senior PDP leader today joined National Conference along with 40 of his associates, saying it was the only party that can "steer" Jammu and Kashmir to peace and prosperity.

"National Conference is the only party that can guarantee unity of Jammu and Kashmir and steer the state to peace, progress and prosperity," Riyaz Ahmed Zargar of Bhalesa in erstwhile Doda district said after joining the party this morning at a function here attended by National Conference leader Dr Farooq Abdullah.

Welcoming Zargar and his associates into the party fold, Abdullah said NC was a "mass movement" which has stood with the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh during their most testing times. The induction of public-spirited activists will strengthen the party at the grassroots level, he said. Abdullah urged NC cadre to intensify their mass contact programme and highlight the problems faced by the people at the appropriate forums.

PTI