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Kashmir : Differences over Hurriyat’s bus journey

	May 30, 2005

Leaders belonging to the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference are all set to board the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus on June 2, but there are doubts on whether they would be able to go on to Islamabad. The invitation from the Pakistan Government to them is to visit both Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan. But the Government of India has made it clear that if they move beyond Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, it would be contrary to the understanding reached between the two countries.

The official clarification came after Islamabad said the Hurriyat leaders were welcome to visit any part of Pakistan they liked. External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said the Government has a “clear understanding with Pakistan that passengers travelling on this bus can travel only within the territory of the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir. Any travel beyond the territory would not be in keeping with the understanding between the two Governments.”

Hurriyat Conference Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said that meetings with Pakistan-based militant leadership and politicians would be on the top of the agenda when they visit Muzaffarabad. He said on their return, the Hurriyat group will resume talks with New Delhi, but the invitation has to come from the Centre.

The Hurriyat hardline faction leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani is undecided about taking the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus to visit Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. He said he wanted “restriction-free meetings with Pakistani leaders other than those suggested by the Government. “How can we travel through the bus service which we have been opposing ? Geelani asked.

Geelani said his group was thinking of travelling upto the Line of Control in Kashmir in a private vehicle and making the same arrangement on the other side to avoid using the bus service. He said the plan required permission of the Indian and Pakistani authorities. He said he did not want Islamabad’s advisory on whom to meet during the visit.

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed has said that Hurriyat leaders should travel to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir by Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service like ordinary people and refrain from going beyond PoK.

Their travel beyond PoK would not be in the spirit of India-Pakistan agreement under which the bus service was launched. “There should not be double standards while dealing with Hurriyat leaders,” he told reporters.

“It is the Pakistan Government which will grant the Hurriyat leaders visa to travel outside PoK and not we.”

However, the Mufti hoped it would not be an impediment to their travel plans. On the statement by the Hurriyat faction led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq that they wanted to persuade militant leaders to agree to a ceasefire, the Chief Minister expressed the hope that they would succeed in their attempt. The Hurriyat’s attitude had been positive and its leaders had continued with the dialogue process.

The Mufti who met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week said he made a request for increasing he frequency of the bus service, which has made five trips since the launch on April 7.



Action plan for peace and development

The Centre has asked the Jammu and Kashmir Government to prepare a comprehensive time-bound action plan for effective implementation of the Indo-Pakistan confidence-building measures (CBMs) for peace and development in the State. Union Home Secretary V.K. Duggal had discussions on the plan with State Government officials in Srinagar last week. He also had a meeting with the Chief Minister.

Addressing a Press conference, Duggal said the dialogue process was a must and the objective of peace was to be taken forward. He pointed out that these measures included increasing the frequency of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service and opening of more routes and trade links between India and Pakistan. There were specific instructions from the Prime Minister that these CBMs should be taken forward, the Union Home Secretary said.

Referring to the security scenario, Duggal said the recent incidents of violence were a temporary phase and added that as compared to previous years, thee was a substantial decline in violence.

The Centre’s interlocutor N.N. Vohra met Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil last week to brief him on the overall situation in Kashmir. They are understood to have deliberated on the possible impact of the visit of Hurriyat leaders to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on the ongoing Indo-Pakistan peace process.

Meanwhile, a controversy has arisen between State Governor Lt. Gen. (Retd.) S.K. Sinha and the Chief Minister Mufti Mohd. Sayeed on the use of forest land for creating facilities for the Amarnath pilgrims. The State Government has withdrawn its earlier order allowing the Amarnath Shrine Board to make use of forest land for creating the facilities. Interestingly, the State Governor heads the board. The matter has also come up in the state High Court.

In another move, Governor S.K. Sinha has returned the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj (Second Amendment) Bill to the legislature for reconsidering it. The Bill empowering the Government to dissolve all panchayats prematurely was passed amidst stiff opposition from the National Conference during the Budget session last month. It is the second time in the history of the state that a Governor has returned a Bill passed by the Legislature. In 1982, the then Governor B.K. Nehru had returned the controversial Resettlement Bill under which the migrants of Pakistan could claim their properties left in the State at the time of partition.