Reigniting hopes of a political reach-out in Kashmir, the Centre’s interlocutor, Dineshwar Sharma, on Wednesday said he “is willing to meet whoever wanted to meet him” after he met former Chief Minister and National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah in Srinagar.
Speaking to The Hindu after the meeting, Mr. Sharma said he met Mr. Abdullah as his mandate was to meet all kinds of people, not just politicians, in Jammu and Kashmir. “I keep meeting so many people. I met the Governor recently and non-political figures. My job is to meet everybody,” he said.
He met Mr. Abdullah at his residence in Srinagar on Wednesday morning. Sources said the “NC leader insisted on an early installation of an elected government in the State”.
This is Mr. Sharma’s second significant meeting since July 16 when he met Governor Satya Pal Malik and apprised him of “his consultations with people from a cross section of society in the State.”
The meeting was followed by the Governor welcoming Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq’s offer for a dialogue, which was immediately opposed by the top BJP leadership including the party general secretary Ram Madhav.
Hardening his stand, Mr. Sharma also said that “nobody has the authority to question the Constitution”, in response to a question on any immediate engagement with the Hurriyat, which stands for a dialogue outside the Constitution.
He, however, was quick to add: “I will meet whoever wants to meet me.”
