The Centre’s special representative for Kashmir Dineshwar Sharma on Tuesday said his talks with more than 35 delegations in Srinagar were constructive, the Hindustan Times reported. Sharma arrived in Srinagar on Monday for a five-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to hold dialogues with the stakeholders in the Valley.
“I listened to people’s grievances at length,” the Centre’s interlocutor for Kashmir told the Hindustan Times. “Most people in the state spoke about governance issues.”
Representatives of youth groups, non-governmental organisations, Sikh Association, cross-Line of Control traders, border residents were among the many who met Sharma on Tuesday. The People’s Democratic Party youth president, Waheed ur Rehman Parra, also spoke to Sharma.
“There is anger and alienation on the ground because of uncertainty. This needs to be addressed,” Parra told PTI.
Sharma also met representatives from political parties including the Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party on Tuesday, The Hindu reported. He is expected to meet the representatives from the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Wednesday, the report added.
Several traders’ associations on Monday had said they would boycott meetings with Sharma. However, smaller trade bodies from various districts met the Centre’s representative on Tuesday to discuss several problems, including repayment of bank loans, transportation of fruits and lack of employment opportunities, PTI reported.
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