New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday evening and reportedly discuss ways to end the current impasse in the Kashmir valley.
It has been reported that Abdullah will brief Manmohan and his senior cabinet colleagues on the situation in the Valley and suggest measures to break the deadlock.
Official sources told that, the discussions will be followed up at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and a full cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Political circles have been hinting at a relief package to the violence-hit valley to be announced on the eve of Eid-ul-Fitr on Saturday.
The package is expected to include revocation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Srinagar and some other districts, withdrawal of causes related to stone-pelting in the past three months and an employment scheme.
Abdullah also wants to push for the release of political prisoners, new employment schemes, swift action against human rights violations, and an all-party meeting on Kashmir, followed by an all-party delegation’s visit to his state.
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This contentious issue is to be discussed at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS). A top source says the Kashmir crisis will be discussed “threadbare.” What’s likely to dominate the agenda is whether to amend AFSPA. Those in favour of changes, sources say, would like to ensure that warrants are secured in advance for arrests, and that grievance cells are able to address citizens’ complaints against the Army. The Defence Ministry’s view, however, is that while these amendments are acceptable in a scenario where the army is called in to aid civil authority – for example, in the case of riots and civil unrest -but they are too restricting in Kashmir where the army has to take on well-trained, heavily-armed fighters.
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