Following their visit to Pakistan, the Hurriyat Conference faction headed by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq is all set to meet Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, sources in the group say. The meeting is to take place in mid January.
“Before Mirwaiz and a six other members left for Pakistan, he was sounded of the meeting during his three-day stay in New Delhi,” say the sources. They say the Hurriyat leaders’ Pakistan visit had the complete approval of New Delhi, and before leaving for Islamabad they had meetings with some “meaningful quarters” in the national capital. “It was during these meetings that Mirwaiz and his colleague were sounded,” says a source.
Mirwaiz, Kashmir Valley’s chief priest, along with a team of six other leaders, returned from Pakistan recently. The team held meetings with Pakistani opinion-makers and political establishment, besides officials and ministers. Hurriyat leaders say their tour was “path-breaking.” They described it as a “step towards resolution of Kashmir issue.” However, reports from Islamabad about the tour say “it did not move beyond the usual rhetoric.”
The faction, which has shifted its agenda from seeking independence to raising daily governance issues from some time now, has, however, faced severe criticism from its own leaders and the parallel faction headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani. Leading the attack from within the camp was Democratic Freedom Party Chairman Shabbir Ahmad Shah who accused the Mirwaiz of keeping him in dark over the visit. Geelani, while questioning the timing of Pakistan visit—as the country is gearing up for general elections— criticised saying the visit would be used by political parties for electoral gains. But, the criticism did not deter the Mirwaiz.
Insiders, in Mirwaiz’s conglomerate, accord great significance to the meetings held in Pakistan, and at the same time say meeting Dr Singh is in ‘continuity’ with Islamabad visit. A source privy to Hurriyat affairs said that its leaders went to Pakistan with particular suggestions and agenda regarding Kashmir. “I assure you that some understanding has emerged with Pakistan, and we would see some movement forward in coming days,” he said, adding, “Meeting with Dr Singh is part of this overall exercise.”
This would be for the fifth time that Mirwaiz and his associates would be holding meeting with New Delhi. Earlier in 2004, Mirwaiz held two meetings with the then Home Minister LK Advani. Hurriyat had two meetings with Dr Singh in September 2005 and May 2006. But there had been no movement.
Hurriyat sources, however, say that the ongoing exercise was “more serious” and there was no room for smugness for any of the stakeholders. They say that Hurriyat leaders’ meeting with the prime minister would be directly related to the Pakistan tour. “The tour has not been held in isolation. A lot of home work has been done for it,” say the sources. “We expect some positive things to emerge very soon,” they add.
Pertinently, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had asked the Hurriyat delegation to Pakistan to also meet New Delhi leaders after they return. He said: “Lopsided dialogue process would not yield any result. After returning from Pakistan they should also talk to Indian leadership.” No one has put any condition,” he said.
While referring Geelani not engaging in talks, Abdullah said: “When it is a universal truth that militancy has achieved nothing and dialogue is only way forward to settle problems, the other separatist group should also get involved in talks to address complex issues for the good of general public and peace and prosperity in the state.”
However, analysts here, cite the New Delhi-appointed interlocutors’ fiasco to cast apprehensions about the scheduled meeting with Dr Singh. Separatists groups had refused to meet three-member panel, appointed after 2010 unrest. When you don’t take some of the prominent leaders from Kashmir on board, it would always raise questions about the entire peace process, says an analyst. “Look at the interlocutors, they couldn’t meet top most separatist leaders and results are for all of us to see,” he said. The report that was submitted to the Home Ministry months ago has become another literature on the Kashmir dispute. The analysts says this is not the first meeting with top leaders in New Delhi and one shouldn’t expect much.
The Sunday Standard