National
Hurriyat drops out of talks in protest
By Shujaat Bukhari
JAMMU, JAN. 15. Three senior leaders of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference have cut short their stay in Delhi in protest against the arrests of its middle-rung leadership. The team comprising the former chairman, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Abdul Gani Lone and Mohammad Yaseen Malik, was scheduled to interact with the diplomats of the G-8 countries as also hold an informal dialogue with the Government.
While Mr. Malik was already in Delhi to attend court in connection with cases against him, Mr. Lone and Mr. Geelani joined him a few days ago. The three leaders were deputed by the executive to apparently apprise the diplomats of G-8 countries in Delhi about the prevailing situation in the troubled State and push forward their stand on Kashmir problem.
But authoritative sources told The Hindu that they were in Delhi to hold an informal round of talks with the Union Government, ahead of the Assembly election due in the State before September. Even as the channels between the Hurriyat leaders and the Government had been open for quite some time, the December 13 attack on Parliament pushed everything into the background. But a ``secret mission'' of a senior IAS officer of the J & K cadre, Wajahat Habibullah, recently to Srinagar revived the ``relations''. It was on his invitation that the Hurriyat leaders had agreed to hold fresh informal talks with the Centre. However, it is not known at what level they were planning to hold talks. Much before the attack on Parliament the Hurriyat chairman had a meeting with Brajesh Mishra, Prime Minister's Principal Secretary, and A.S. Dulat, OSD in the Prime Minister's Office. Mr. Habibullah, now director of the IAS Academy, Mussoorie, had held talks with the Hurriyat chairman, Abdul Gani Bhat and other leaders. The visit of the Hurriyat leaders to Delhi assumed significance as the team had Mr. Geelani as one of its members. He is considered a staunch pro-Pakistan leader.
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