Ready for talks with anyone having meaningful ideas: PM

In a fresh initiative, prime minister Manmohan Singh today expressed the Centre's willingness to "talk to anyone" having "meaningful ideas" to promote peace in Jammu and Kashmir and offered to resume dialogue with Pakistan provided it curbed activities of those engaged in terrorism in India.

Flanked by Congress President Sonia Gandhi and state leaders -- chief minister Omar Abdullah, Union ministers Farooq Abdullah and Ghulam Nabi Azad and former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed -- Singh announced Centre's assistance to a series of development measures in the state at a public meeting here.
 
Affirming that "the era of violence and terrorism is coming to an end", the Prime Minister recalled that five years ago his government had committed itself to having unconditional dialogue with "whoever abjures violence" after which the government had held discussions with different groups and implemented a number of initiatives.

I wish to say again today that we are willing to talk to anyone who has any meaningful ideas for promoting peace and development in Kashmir. "We want to carry all sections of the people with us in resolving the political and economic problems of Jammu and Kashmir," Singh said.

After the meeting, the prime minister and other leaders flagged off the 18-km long Anantnag-Qazigund section of the Kashmir rail project. "The day is not far when trains will run from Jammu to Srinagar through the Banihal pass," he said.