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Hurriyat firm on Pak trip

The separatist All-Party Hurriyat Conference has set a visit to Pakistan as a pre-condition for dialogue with the Centre.

A spokesman of the amalgam said in Srinagar that there could be no dialogue with New Delhi till the five-member delegation visits Pakistan for talks with the militant outfits and military government.

The spokesman was reacting to media reports that the Centre had constituted a team, headed by deputy chairman, Planning Commission, K C Pant, for talks with the conglomerate on the Kashmir issue.

''There is no change in policy and there will be no talks with New Delhi before the Pakistan visit,'' he added.

Hurriyat chairman Prof Abdul Ghani Bhat had nominated a five-member team, including former chairmen Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Moulvi Omar Farooq, besides Abdul Ghani Lone, Moulvi Abass Ansari and Sheihk Abdul Aziz, to visit Islamabad.

The visit, initially scheduled for January 15, could not take off as the government did not provide travel documents to the team members.

Farooq is the only leader in the alliance having a valid passport.

There was pressure on Prof Bhat to replace Geelani, a hardliner, who believes that the Kashmir issue is religious and not political.

Geelani's stand is at odds with the views of other Hurriyat leaders.

The APHC had also requested the Jamat-e-Islami to replace Geelani in the Hurriyat executive. However, the Jamat Majlis Shoura turned down the request.

UNI

The Kashmir Cease-Fire: The Complete Coverage

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