Opposition delegation from J&K to meet Modi tomorrow

New Delhi, Aug 21 (PTI) With Kashmir in turmoil, adelegation of opposition parties from the state will meetPrime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow to impress upon him theneed for finding a "political solution" to the crisis byinitiating a dialogue with "all stakeholders". The delegation led by former Chief Minister Omar Abdullahof the National Conference will apprise Modi of the groundsituation in the state, which is in the grip of a prolongedspell of violence and lockdown since the gunning down ofmilitant commander Burhan Wani by security forces on July 8,and highlight the plight of Kashmiri people. The delegation will include CPI-M MLA Mohammed YusufTarigami, state Congress President G A Mir, senior leaders ofNational Conference and some Independent MLAs. Sources in the opposition parties that would comprise thedelegation said it would request the Prime Minister to impressupon the state government to stop dealing with the situation"administratively" as it was leading to "unprecedenteddisaffection", especially among the youth. It would underscore the need to initiate a "credible andmeaningful" dialogue with "all stakeholders" to bring an endto the unrest without "further waste of time", sources said. The delegation would bring up the issue of use of pelletguns by security forces which has caused injuries to civilianson a large scale and pitch for an end to "mass harassment,raids and arrests" as these have worsened an already volatilesituation in the state. With the unrest in Kashmir showing no signs of abating,leaders of opposition parties ed by Omar had yesterday calledon President Pranab Mukherjee and requested him to urge theModi government to find a political solution to it. The visit to the President followed a meeting chaired the46-year-old Omar where serious concern was voiced about theturmoil spreading to other parts of the state including Jammuand Kargil. The former Chief Minister, who was also accompanied bysenior leaders of NC including Nasir Wani, Davinder Rana, AliMohammed Sagar and A R Rather, had yesterday said, "The firethat has been raging in Kashmir Valley has already startedspreading across Peer Panjal and Chenab Valley in Jammu regionand Kargil area." PTI SKL SKSK