The Centre is chalking out a programme to reach out to the Kashmiris, Minister of State for Home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said on Friday.
He told The Hindu that he would likely visit the Amarnath shrine next week, and the process of opening a dialogue could be started then. He did not identify the groups with whom the dialogue would be initiated.
“It’s our wish to go to the Kashmiris and tell them of the development story. It’s our responsibility to talk to the people; we are looking for a mechanism... Soon, we will come up with a concrete plan. The dialogue will be held at different levels,” Mr. Ahir said.
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In May, when Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi visited Srinagar, he was told by State officials that the Delhi-based news channels were showing the State in a negative light, and this helped Pakistan stoke more violence in the Kashmir Valley. Asked whether action was being taken against news channels, Mr. Ahir said: “We haven’t received any complaint that news channels were vilifying the Kashmiris. But if we come across any such thing, we will act.”
He said the lynching of a police officer outside the Jamia Masjid in Srinagar on Thursday was a sign of desperation among Pakistan-backed groups. “Pakistan doesn’t want Kashmiri children to progress. It attracts foreign investment to its soil, but doesn’t want any development to reach Kashmir. The Prime Minister has sanctioned a ₹80,000-crore package for the Kashmiris,” he said.
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Concurs with CM
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He also concurred with Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti’s statement that “restraint shouldn’t be seen as a sign of weakness.” “The opinion of the State government is not different: we should not fire at our own people. If this [the situation] persists, we will not adopt a restrained approach,” Mr. Ahir said.
Asked whether the communication between the police and the locals had snapped, Mr. Ahir said: “Some people are acting at the behest of separatists. There are Kashmiris who are doing well in professional exams and in other fields.”