Hurriyat Leaders Refuse to Meet Opposition MPs: "What Is There to Talk About?"

SRINAGAR: Amid growing unrest in the valley, the powerful Hurriyat trio of Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik refused to meet the members of the All-Party delegation who arrived in Srinagar earlier today.

After meeting with the J&K Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti and Opposition leaders at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre, members of the delegation, in a departure from their schedule, left the venue in three groups to meet the Hurriyat trio.

Top Left leaders, Sitaram Yechury and D Raja, and Sharad Yadav of JD (U) visited the Hyderpora residence of Geelani, the chairman of Hurriyat Conference, who has been put under house arrest since the uprising broke out in the valley on July 8.

Sources said after knocking the door and waiting for about ten minutes, the leaders had to leave disappointed without any meeting.“We can move forward only through talks. With this intention, we went there to listen to his (Geelani’s) viewpoint. But he didn’t open the door," Yechury said.

The delegation members later went to the Humhama police station where the JKLF chief Yasin Malik has been lodged since the uprising broke out. However, they had to return disappointed from there as well since Malik refused to meet them.

According to TV reports, Malik told Yadav that the situation in Kashmir doesn't permit any engagement or talks with the visiting delegation members. “You have seen the situation. What can we talk about,” Malik was quoted as saying by Yadav.

Moderate Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who has been lodged at Cheshmashahi sub-jail, also turned away Hyderbabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi who had come to meet him.

Undeterred the Opposition MPs plan to knock at the doors of the jails and residences again tomorrow, in a bid to meet the Hurriyat leaders before the delegation leaves for Jammu.

(Cover photograph Basit Zargar)