Omar meets PC, discusses BJP plan to hoist tricolour

New Delhi, Jan 19 (PTI) Jammu and Kashmir Chief MinisterOmar Abdullah today met Home Minister P Chidambaram to conveythe state government''s assessment of the situation in view ofBJP''s plan to hoist the tricolour in Srinagar''s Lal Chowk areaon Republic Day.

He hoped that the BJP would do nothing to precipitatethe situation in the state through its proposed Ekta Yatra toSrinagar while making it clear that an appropriate decisionwould be taken on how to deal with it.

After the 40-minute meeting with Chidambaram, Omar saidhe had conveyed to the Home Minister the state government''sassessment of the situation vis-a-vis the BJP''s proposedyatra.

"I am not going into get into any specific as to what weare going to do. As I said time and again, we are hoping thatnothing will be done to precipitate the situation in Jammu andKashmir. As we come close to January 26, we will decide whatwe will do," he told reporters here.

The BJP''s Rashtriya Ekta Yatra from Kolkata willculminate in Srinagar on January 26 with hoisting of thetricolour in Lal Chowk.

The Chief Minister said he would be in close touchwith the Home Minister on how to deal with any situationarising out of the BJP programme.

Omar said he had a "fairly detailed meeting" withChidambaram and they discussed the current situation in thestate -- both in the Valley as well as in Jammu.

"The periods around 26th of January and 15th of Augustare sensitive for the state. We discussed the ongoing effortsof the interlocutors...They are currently in the state as wespeak....Certain recommendations have been made by theinterlocutors which we discussed.

"I also pressed some of the points regarding themodernisation of Jammu and Kashmir Police, particularly thecreation of five special battalions for dealing with law andorder, disturbances and obviously the recent developments withregard to the Ekta Yatra," he said.

Several organisations, including JKLF led by YasinMalik, have opposed the BJP''s yatra.

Omar has already appealed to the BJP to abandon itsplans to hoist the tricolour at Lal Chowk, saying the partyhas exposed its intention to create trouble in the Valley. PTIACB NES SC