Excelsior Correspondent
Jammu/ SRINAGAR, Sept 3: Reaching out to separatists, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today invited their top leaders for talks with the All Party Delegation (APD) that is due to arrive here tomorrow to help seek a peaceful resolution of the problems facing the State.
Mehbooba wrote letters to the leaders in her capacity as PDP chief, seeking their cooperation by engaging with the delegation to be led by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
“I write to you in my capacity as the president of the J&K People’s Democratic Party and request you to take the lead and engage with the All Party Delegation of Parliamentarians visiting the State tomorrow.
“This will be the start of a credible and meaningful political dialogue and resolution process to end the stalemate,” Mehbooba wrote in the letter addressed to the separatists’ leaders.
She said cutting across party lines and political positions, the country’s political leadership has reached out and “it is for us to collectively lend it credence and credibility.”
“All of us, be it the mainstream political parties or political groups with a separatist agenda, voice the urges and aspirations of our people, as we understand those, and seek a resolution of the problems as we see them from our own perspectives.
“I do hope that you will give this suggestion of mine a thought and indicate a time and place of your convenience for an exchange of ideas with the delegation.”
Mehbooba said her party has always believed that the Hurriyat Conference is a stakeholder in the peace, resolution and prosperity of the State. Indeed, right in the beginning in our Party’s founding declaration we stood for dialogue with all stakeholders as the only way forward, she said.
“All of us are deeply concerned, albeit in our own way, about the existing situation in the Valley. Notwithstanding the fact that you and I have different and divergent political ideologies, I have no doubt that all of us have the best interest of the people of J&K in mind.”
“True, our politics and programmes are at variance with each other, but our concerns for our people and society in general, and the future of our youth in particular, should not be any different,” she added.
Mehbooba said when her party formed an alliance with the Congress, the cornerstone of their Common Minimum Programme was dialogue with parties of all ideological hues.
“This was later followed by an unconditional dialogue, under the leadership of the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, with Deputy Prime Minister, L K Advani”.
Mehbooba said in the PDP manifesto for the last Parliamentary election, it was clearly mentioned that her party will seek the resolution of the issue taking Hurriyat Conference on board. The same was reiterated in the manifesto for Assembly election.
“Indeed, even in the Agenda of Alliance, which is the basis of our Government formation with our alliance partners, the Bharatiya Janata Party, it has been made clear that the State Government will create conditions to facilitate resolution of all issues and will help initiate a sustained and meaningful dialogue with all the stakeholders, including all political groups in J&K irrespective of their ideological views and predilections to build a broad based consensus on resolution of all outstanding issues of J&K,” she said.
Mehbooba said in order to convert the conviction and commitment of a peaceful and prosperous J&K into reality, it is important that “you share your thoughts and beliefs with this distinguished group who represent the people of India and not only the Government of India.”
Mehbooba has addressed the letter to the leaders of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, Hurriyat Conference, Hurriyat Conference J&K, JKLF, National Front and Jamaat-e-Islami including Sayeed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Mohammad Yasin Malik, Prof Abdul Gani Bhat, Moulvi Abbas Ansari, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Bilal Gani Lone, Aga Hassan, Naeem Ahmad Khan and Amir Jamiat-e-Ahli-Hadees, J&K.
Earlier, on the eve of the visit of an All-Party Delegation to Jammu and Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti called for engaging all sections of the society, including Hurriyat Conference, in a credible and meaningful political dialogue for resolution of the problems in the Valley.
The country’s political leadership must, without any further delay, reach out to and engage all sections of the society, including leaders of the Hurriyat Conference, in a productive dialogue process to resolve the issue and make peace a reality in Jammu and Kashmir, she said while visiting the family of a person killed in firing by security forces.
“Visited the family of late Mashooq Ahmed, firing victim of Kund, Kulgam and offered heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family… The loss of human lives is a colossal tragedy and every one should strive for peace in J&K,” she posted on Facebook.
The Chief Minister said it is perhaps for the first time that the Kashmir issue has been, during the past two months, discussed in so many forums and at so many levels including Parliament and at All-Party Meetings where judicious views were put across by all shades of the country’s political opinion on how to end the stalemate.
The need of the hour is to build on this larger political consensus within the country and initiate tangible measures to address the issue, she said.
Mehbooba said the present situation in Kashmir calls for every right thinking party, group or individual to rise to the occasion and strive for finding ways and avenues for the restoration of peace and resolution of the problem.
“Right now Kashmir is again embroiled in a burning situation and we have hope that all sides will pick up elements of sanity and pragmatism and strike a new benchmark towards the resolution of the problem in light of the global and sub-continental realities,” she said.
While the separatist leadership shall also have to take a step forward, the Centre on its part shall have to put off the fire on internal discontent, Mehbooba said.
Meanwhile, Mehbooba today visited the family of a victim of security forces firing in Kulgam district and said everyone should strive for peace in the State.
Reiterating the urgency of initiating dialogue in Jammu and Kashmir, the Chief Minister called for engaging all sections of the society in a credible and meaningful political process for the resolution of the issue.
The country’s political leadership must, without any further delay, reach out and engage all sections of the society including the leaders of the Hurriyat Conference in a productive dialogue process to resolve the issue and make peace a reality in Jammu and Kashmir, Mehbooba said while interacting with people at Mashooq’s residence.
During her meeting with the Prime Minister last month, she suggested a three-pronged approach including talks with all sections of society within J&K including the separatist leadership and also with Pakistan to put the reconciliation and resolution process back on track, Mehbooba said.
She expressed the hope that the upcoming visit of the All-party Delegation to the State will facilitate revival of the much-needed peace and resolution process in and around Jammu and Kashmir.
The Chief Minister said that the people of the state have given the present Government the mandate to voice their urges and aspirations and seek resolution of the problems by involving all the stakeholders in a productive dialogue process.
The same has been reiterated in the Agenda of Alliance wherein it has been made clear that the State Government will create conditions to facilitate resolution of all issues and will help initiate a sustained and meaningful dialogue with all the stakeholders, including all political groups in J&K irrespective of their ideological views and predilections to build a broad based consensus on resolution of all outstanding issues of J&K, she said.
Referring to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s latest statement that the seeds of the current unrest in Kashmir were sown during Independence and a solution to the problem will be found , Mehbooba said the prevailing situation in Kashmir presents not just a challenge, but also an opportunity to the Prime Minister to take some bold measures towards resolution of the issue and make India more at peace not only with its neighbours, but also with itself.
Stressing the need for revival of peace, reconciliation and confidence building initiatives, both on internal and external fronts, which she said had worked so well between 2002 and 2005, Mehbooba said the present situation in Kashmir calls for every right thinking party, group or individual to rise to the occasion and strive for finding ways and avenues for the restoration of peace and resolution of the problem.
To end the stalemate and rein in the vicious cycle of violence, the doors for purposeful, constructive and unconditional dialogue need to be opened, she said.
“Right now Kashmir is again embroiled in a burning situation and we have hope that all sides will pick up elements of sanity and pragmatism and strike a new benchmark towards the resolution of the problem in light of the global and sub-continental realities,” she said.
While the separatist leadership shall also have to take a step forward, the Centre on its part shall have to put off the fire on internal discontent, Mehbooba said.
Maintaining that the people of the State have always responded positively to the initiatives in improving the security situation, Mehbooba said the fact that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are the biggest custodians of its interests has to be recognised to completely end the atmosphere of trust deficit.
“We have to work with compassion and through a humanitarian approach to reach out to and support the families who have lost their near and dear ones to the violence in prevailing situation and support them in living a dignified life,” she said and added that the government won’t be seen wanting in this endeavour as most of the victims of the current unrest belong to the poorest of the poor families.
Stating that the people in Kashmir have to pay huge costs during recurrent unrests by way of losing precious lives, facing colossal economic losses, educational deprivation and social erosion, the Chief Minister said the pain of Kashmiris has reached a level, where the hope for a peaceful resolution of their problems is sure to get substantial support.
“We should not allow this opportunity to be lost, especially when all the political parties in the country are on board for a permanent solution,” she said.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
