JKNT
Srinagar, October 27: Governor N N Vohra told a five-member team led by former external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha on Thursday that there was an urgent need for peace and inclusive dialogue to restore peace in Kashmir at the earliest.
Vohra who all along has been laying stress on good governance and peace for prosperity of Jammu and Kashmir through sustained dialogue , according to sources, told the visiting delegation that dialogue could pave way for peace only when there is an open-mind about it . The current more than 100 days of disturbances, accentuated by the acts of violence, arson, burning of schools and private vehicles , have presented a new challenge for the civil society.
Sources said that the Governor appreciated the initiative by Sinha and his team that comprises
Sushobha Barve, Executive Director, Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR), Air Vice Marshal (Retd.) Kapil Kak and Bharat Bhushan former Editor and senior journalist in visiting Kashmir and speaking to the stake holders.
Sinha recounted that how the team has been able to break ice in talking to separatists and other stake holders in Kashmir and the need for a conducive atmosphere for meaningful interaction to tap the fields of peace in Kashmir .
“ The people have the hope, but they want someone credible to translate that into reality for them,” the Sinha team is reported to have told the Governor . “ They know that nothing can be worked out overnight, but the necessity for the start of a result-promising process should begin in the right earnest.” This is the feedback of the team that they shared with the Governor, sources said.
The highlight of the visit of the team has been its meetings with hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq . This enabled the team to convince other stakeholders of sincerity of its purpose.
The team, led by Sinha, which is visiting Srinagar to talk to various stakeholders about the ongoing disturbances, shared their views with the Governor.
The Governor stressed the importance of a sustained dialogue with all stakeholders for securing very early restoration of peace and normalcy in the State.
