BJP distances itself from talks with separatists,Omar takes credit for team getting ‘balanced view’

“No,no,it was not a mandate. It was not discussed in the delegation. Some of the members expressed their desire to go there. Naturally,the delegation leader said you can go,” she said.

CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury,who met Geelani,said that they put forward the desire to meet the separatists before the delegation and there was no opposition from the BJP.

He said the whole idea of being a part of the delegation was to tell the people of Kashmir that “we are not to discriminate against anyone and would like to meet everyone”.

On the delegation members meeting separatists leaders,Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said this was scheduled.

“We had only worked towards it to make it possible. I am happy that it worked and the delegation got views of every shade of opinion in the Valley.

“The delegation has come obviously to get a report about the ground situation here and we were accused of stage-managing… but we tried to ensure the delegation meets as many people as possible,” he said expressing satisfaction over the delegation’s visit to the state.

The second day of the visit began with a surprise visit by Lok Jan Shakti leader Ram Vilas Paswan driving to the residence of Geelani during which he raised the issue of minorities like Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs living in the Valley.

Geelani assured Paswan that minorities in the Valley are safe,sources privy to the meeting said.

They said the chairman of the Hurriyat faction explained the concept of Islamisation was unnecessarily being maligned as Islamic society guaranteed the right to life,honour and liberty of the minorities.

Muslim Majlis MP Assaduddin Owaisi,who had on Monday met Geelani,today called on moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq at his Nigeen residence on the outskirts of the city and asked him to contribute in restoring peace and normalcy in the valley.

A part of the delegation led by Chidambaram also went to Tangmarg,44 kilometres from here,to get an on-the-spot assessment of the damage in this small town in North Kashmir which witnessed mob violence on September 13 over the alleged desecration of the Holy Quaran in the United States. The mob had ransacked a missionary school and several government buildings.

Omar expressed satisfaction over the visit of the delegation saying it was the endeavour of his government that the visiting team got a balanced view about the situation in the state.

“I cannot expect everyone to praise me but the fact that they got a balanced view (about the situation) is important,” he said.

The chief minister said the delegation’s visit was not a “mere show” and they needed to know the ground situation in the Valley.

“Kashmir is not only about mainstream political parties only but also about separatist groups. Our effort was to show the visiting delegation the real picture of what is happening here.”

The delegation,which also had BJP’s Arun Jaitley,met a cross section of the people in this area who sought an early resolution of the Kashmir issue. Around 300 people,who came forward to meet them,also demanded the revocation of Armed forces Special Powers Act,eradication of poverty,unemployment and complained about poor infrastructure.

Eleven members of the All Party delegation,on a fact finding mission here,also visited the SMHS hospital to meet the people injured in the ongoing unrest in Kashmir valley but were greeted by protests by the relatives and attendants of patients.

The team,which included Swaraj and Yechury,interacted with the injured people admitted in ward 16 of the SMHS hospital.

After the hospital visit,Yechury downplayed the protests saying it was a normal reaction. “We never expected everything to be smooth. And for that matter,if we visit a Delhi hospital where patients have been admitted after a natural disaster,this is the kind of reaction we will face… so please don’t read much into it,” he said.