Tributes paid to Maharaja Hari Singh on J&K Accession Day

Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta on Sunday said it was due to the efforts of Dogra Maharaja Hari Singh that Jammu and Kashmir became a part of India.

Gupta, who visited Jammu to take part in an event to observe the Jammu and Kashmir Accession Day said that Hari Singh had farsightedness due to which he chose India. “We are citizens of India because Maharaja Hari Singh signed instrument of accession. The work he did for the unity and integrity of this motherland is commendable,” Gupta said while talking to mediapersons.

Meanwhile, the J&K National Panthers Party (Bhim) observed Accession Day today by laying floral tributes to Maharaja Hari Singh.

Speaking on the occasion, party president Vilakshan Singh reminded that on October 26, 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh executed the Instrument of Accession. “The document was accepted by the then Governor-General of India, Lord Mountbatten, on October 27, 1947,” he said.

“Accession Day is a landmark in Jammu & Kashmir’s history. It is a day for all residents of J&K to reflect on our integration into India and the sacrifices made in that defence,” he said. Singh urged the Centre to expedite “the liberation of Pakistan-occupied and China-held regions of J&K” as a genuine tribute to Maharaja Hari Singh’s legacy.