Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Nov 4: Urging Government of India (GoI) to make conducive atmosphere for negotiations, hardline Hurriyat Conference chairman, Syed Ali Shah Geelani today said dialogue is the only option to resolve Kashmir issue.
Addressing a meeting of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, one of the constituents of Hurriyat Conference at its office here, Geelani said Kashmir is “world’s oldest unresolved issue and bone of contention between India and Pakistan, which was a potential threat to peace in sub-continent”.
“We have a clear agenda and our viewpoint is unambiguous that Kashmir issue can be resolved through dialogue. However, the onus lies on India to illustrate its seriousness and sincerity,” Geelani said. The octogenarian Hurriyat leader said that the “conducive atmosphere for negotiations is prime necessity”.
“Dialogue is the only option…but unfortunately, India has never assigned any political importance to this issue,” he regretted. “…history stands witness that India instead of acknowledging its historical perspective, as core and political issue, always treated it a law and order problem,” the Hurriyat hardliner said.
Geelani expressed his deep concern over the prevailing “horrendous situation” in State and said “unabated State sponsored violence, arrests, intimidations and killings will further deteriorate the situation”. The separatists including Geelani have already refused to hold any meeting with Union Government’s interlocutor Dineshwar Sharma who is scheduled to arrive in Valley next week for holding “sustained dialogue”.