New Delhi: The Centre has extended invitation to at least 14 political parties of Jammu and Kashmir to participate them for the scheduled all-party meeting chaired by Prime Narednra Modi on June 24, the sources said here on Saturday.
According to the sources, the Centre has sent formal invitations to 14 political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, including four former chief ministers to participate in the meet. The meeting is expected to chalk out the road map for holding assembly election and the ongoing delimitation process there.
The leaders of the National Conference (NC), People Democratic Party(PDP), BJP, Congress,Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, CPI(M), People’s Conference and the Jammu & Kashmir National Panthers Party have been telephonically invited by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, sources said, adding that the meeting would be held at the Prime Minister’s official residence at 3 PM on June 24, it added.
This would be the first of its kind of dialogue with Kashmiri leaders since August 5, 2019 when the Centre stripped off the special status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir which was bifurcated into two union territories.
All the leaders are supposed to have a COVID-19 negative certificate before participating the proposed meeting.
Among those invited are four former chief ministers - Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah of the National Conference, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti while it was reported from Srinagar that authorities have released PDP leader Sartaj Madni from detention to make a amenable situation before talk.
Meanwhile, noting that the MHA has been in touch with the J&K administration, another source in the Government set up said that prior to the all-party meeting, the Centre has formed a key-committee comprising of the Union Home Minister, J&K Lieutenant-Governor, Union Home Secretary and other key senior MHA officials to work out a report on issues concerning the UT for discussion.
The Thursday’s all-party meeting is being called to take the view of the mainstream parties and leaders in J&K about initiating the political process for a popularly elected Government in the UT. The demand for the Statehood for J&K is likely to gain momentum with the announcement of polls so the Centre wants to moot a debate beforehand on this.
The also Centre expects its latest moves to assuage the popular mood throughout J&K. And, thus, it has decided to test waters right now, the source added.
|