Cong pitches for talks issue with all stakeholders on Kashmir

New Delhi, Aug 25: As Home Minister Rajnath Singh held talks with political leaders in Kashmir, Congress today pitched for dialouge with non-state political parties and all stakeholders, including students.

Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said no one from the government, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have appealed for peace in Kashmir which has been on boil for more than a month now.

"We hope that Home Minister not only talks with political parties, there are others as well, non-state political parties and other stakeholders. He should hold talks with students, trade unions and different communities.

There should be peace. "He should appeal for peace as well. I have never seen any minister or the Prime Minister appeal for peace, neither inside or outside Parliament nor in Kashmir. Least they can do is to appeal," Azad said. Meanwhile, JD(U) said the key question was how much effort would the Home Minister invest in taking forward what he talked about.

"I am happy that the Home Minister has finally understood that there is a need to begin a political engagement with Jammu and Kashmir. The key question here is how much effort will he invest in taking forward what he has said.

"What is the kind of engagement that would be planned, so that the current impasse and sense of alienation, particularly amongst the youth, and the current involvement of Pakistan in Kashmir can be stemmed.

We need to carefully watch the next step that this government takes," party leader Pawan Verma said. As part of Centre's outreach, the Home Minister yesterday visited Kashmir for the second time in a month and held talks with political leaders during which he was told the Centre should initiate a dialogue with all stakeholders to find a lasting solution to problems faced by rthe state.

The death toll in the unrest in Kashmir Valley that broke out on July 8 after killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani has now climbed to 66.

PTI