All-party team leaves behind hope, fear in J&K

The all-party delegation led by Union home minister P Chidambaram wound up its three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday and returned to New Delhi, leaving behind a gleam of hope and a cloud of fear. 

The 39-member delegation met almost 1,000 people from a cross section of society in the state and heard them until midnight on Tuesday.

The highlight of the visit, however, remained the meeting of some team members with separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq of Hurriyat and Yasin Malik of JKLF in Srinagar and jailed president of Jammu Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party Shabir Shah in Jammu on Monday and Tuesday.

Separatists, who reiterated their known positions during the meetings, are learnt to be waiting to how the delegation responds to their suggestions on its return to New Delhi.

“Let’s hope this time you understand things better,” Shabir Shah told the delegates.  Chief minister Omar Abdullah felt the delegation’s visit was a “significant step”. He hoped there would be “movement forward” in addressing problems faced by the people of Kashmir.