Hyderabad, April 25 : Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Friday led a candlelight rally to protest against the Pahalgam terror attack.

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) President and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, former Indian cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin, Congress MLC and actress Vijayashanthi, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President Mahesh Kumar Goud, ministers and leaders and workers of the Congress party participated in the rally held on the Necklace Road.

Senior Congress leader and former minister for foreign affairs Salman Khursheed, senior Congress leader Pawan Khera and some foreign delegates attending the ongoing Bharat Summit in the city also joined the rally.

The Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues were seen wearing black scarves to condemn the terror attack that killed 26 tourists.

Ministers Damodar Raja Narasimha, Ponnam Prabhakar, Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, Jupally Krishna Rao, and Hyderabad Mayor Gadwal Vijayalaxmi participated in the rally.

A large number of people participated in the rally from People's Plaza to the statue of Indira Gandhi. The participants were seen holding Indian flags and raising slogans against Pakistan.

Speaking at the culmination of the rally, the Chief Minister said that the terror attack on tourists is highly condemnable.

He urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to follow in the footsteps of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who gave a befitting reply to Pakistan in 1971 by dividing it into two parts.

Revanth Reddy said former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was so impressed by Indira Gandhi's action that he called her 'Durga Mata'.

'Since Modi ji is a devotee of Durga Mata, he should draw inspiration from Indira Gandhi ji and give a strong response to Pakistan. Divide Pakistan into two with a single blow. Capture Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and integrate it with India,' he said.

Revanth Reddy called for rising above politics in the fight against terrorism. He said that all 140 crore Indians are united in this fight.

He said all people were fully backing the measures taken by the Indian government against Pakistan.

The Chief Minister called for stringent punishment for those involved in the attack

He said that the state government expresses its sympathy with the families of all those who were killed in the heinous attack. He said everyone should come forward to stand by the families.

/IANS