Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday said the State government was vigorously working to facilitate internal and external dialogues to address the political issues and help bring permanent peace and tranquillity in the region.
“While we firmly believe that internal dialogue is imperative to provide a platform for all shades of opinion in the State to ventilate their views, we consider India-Pakistan talks essential in finding an amicable solution to all issues in consonance with the aspirations of the people of the State.”
Speaking at a public meeting in the remote Gurez town of north Kashmir, Mr. Abdullah said addressing issues peacefully in a political atmosphere was the only way out to solve them. “Violence is no answer,” he said, adding that Jammu and Kashmir had witnessed a saga of gun culture for more than 20 years, leaving in its trail only destruction and bloodshed. He said stone-pelting and shutdowns only resulted in economic losses. The perpetrators of these acts should realise the damage they were doing to their own people, he said.
