New Delhi: On a day when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj made a strong pitch for resuming dialogue with Pakistan, a Hurriyat delegation met Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit here.
The meeting was to primarily discuss the resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan and also to convey the message to Basit to maintain a consistent policy on Kashmir. This message was delivered by the Hurriyat delegation on behalf of its chief Syed Ali Geelani.
It cannot be lost on anyone that this will be a setback to the goodwill earned just a few days ago in Islamabad. India has consistently maintained that the Hurriyat cannot be treated as a third party to the talks and that Kashmir is a bilateral issue which needs to be sorted out between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani envoy by holding this meeting today and raising the “K” card has attempted to bring the spotlight back on Kashmir in the Indo-Pak dialogue. Swaraj, in her Parliament statement today, tried doing just the opposite.
Hours after their meeting, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) issued a press statement in Srinagar which said: “A delegation sent by chairman Syed Ali Geelani today held a detailed meeting for one-and-a-half hours with Basit.”
“They also discussed the Kashmir policy,” APHC spokesman Ayaz Akbar said. “The APHC delegation handed them a message of Geelani that Pakistan should continue to maintain consistency and firmness over its Kashmir policy and play an active role in highlighting the human rights violations committed by Indian forces in Jammu & Kashmir on the international forums,” Akbar said.
The meeting was to primarily discuss the resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan and also to convey the message to Basit to maintain a consistent policy on Kashmir. This message was delivered by the Hurriyat delegation on behalf of its chief Syed Ali Geelani.
It cannot be lost on anyone that this will be a setback to the goodwill earned just a few days ago in Islamabad. India has consistently maintained that the Hurriyat cannot be treated as a third party to the talks and that Kashmir is a bilateral issue which needs to be sorted out between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani envoy by holding this meeting today and raising the “K” card has attempted to bring the spotlight back on Kashmir in the Indo-Pak dialogue. Swaraj, in her Parliament statement today, tried doing just the opposite.
Hours after their meeting, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) issued a press statement in Srinagar which said: “A delegation sent by chairman Syed Ali Geelani today held a detailed meeting for one-and-a-half hours with Basit.”
“They also discussed the Kashmir policy,” APHC spokesman Ayaz Akbar said. “The APHC delegation handed them a message of Geelani that Pakistan should continue to maintain consistency and firmness over its Kashmir policy and play an active role in highlighting the human rights violations committed by Indian forces in Jammu & Kashmir on the international forums,” Akbar said.
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