ITANAGAR, Nov 26 - Internationally acclaimed boxer from Manipur and Rajya Sabha member MC Mary Kom today called on Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu at his Secretariat office here.
Mother of three, Mary Kom is in this capital town to attend �Mrs Arunachal-2016�, being organised by the Ngurang Learning Institute later in the day.
The Chief Minister accorded her a warm welcome. She was accompanied by her husband Onler Kom and patron of Mrs Arunachal-2016, Ngurang Pinch and organiser Ngurang Reena. The Kom couple was gifted with traditional dresses of various Arunachal tribes.
The five-time world boxing champion expressed her delight on her second visit to Arunachal Pradesh. �I am here because I love Arunachal. We are neighbours. We are brothers and sisters,� she said.
Mary Kom�s visit to Arunachal is also about sharing her life�s struggle as a woman; on how she fought hard, beating all odds to ultimately become the world boxing champion. �Even my father didn�t approve of my career in boxing during initial days,� she said. �I never gave up my struggle. I knew what men could, also women could.�
In her appeal to women of Arunachal, Mary Kom asked them to stand up to fight for their rights. �If we women do not support and help each other, then who will support our cause.�
She is now determined to win a gold medal for her country in Olympic Games, a dream, she says, has remained unfulfilled. Khandu wished her luck to win a gold medal for the country. He also hoped that women of the State will be greatly inspired by her success story.
