Kashmiri separatists on Tuesday said the Centre should clarify what it wants to talk about so that the Hurriyat Conference can join the dialogue process, reported PTI. “Any effort that government of India makes in this direction will find takers in Kashmir and Pakistan,” separatists Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik said in a joint statement.
On Sunday, Union Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh said India was willing to hold talks if Pakistan takes the initiative. “If Pakistan is ready to talk, why won’t we talk?” Singh said in the interview to The Indian Express. “We want to have good relations with our neighbour. But even the neighbour will have to take some initiative. Pakistan is firing at our borders, indulging in ceasefire violations. It is trying to infiltrate terrorists. It is not mending its ways. But it will have to one day.”
The separatists claimed Singh’s statement was vague and ambiguous. “We want to understand what the government of India is conveying so that we can respond accordingly,” they added.
Earlier, the government asked the armed forces not to launch any operations in Jammu and Kashmir during the month of Ramzan. Singh said the government may extend the “ceasefire” in Kashmir “if the situation remains peaceful”.
Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa had said in April that a peaceful resolution to disputes could be found through “comprehensive and meaningful dialogue”. On May 21, Minister of Defence Nirmala Sitharaman responded saying India will take seriously any statement from Pakistan calling for peace.
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