Pakistan invites Hurriyat leaders for reception party of Sartaj Aziz

New Delhi , 19 August: A year after India cancelled the Indo-Pak foreign secretary level talks over Pakistan embassy’s invite to Hurriyat leaders ahead of talks, the Pakistan High Commissioner in New Delhi has invited Hurriyat leaders for a “reception party” on August 23, the day the NSA-level talks between the two countries are scheduled in New Delhi.
Sources say that Hurriyat leaders received a call from Pakistan High Commission on Tuesday evening inviting them to the High Commission for August 23.
They have been invited for “reception party” of Sartaj Aziz. The meet between Hurriyat leaders and Aziz is scheduled for the evening of August 23. The invited leaders include Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.
The invite assumes significance as India, last year, cancelled talks with Pakistan terming Pak High Commission’s invite to separatist leaders as “unacceptable interference”.
It is not clear yet whether the separatist would accept the invite by the High Commission or not.
Recently, the Pak High Commission had invited the separatists for a Eid Milan. While Hurriyat chairman Geelani and JKLF supremo rejected the invite citing ignoring of Kashmir issue in the joint statement of PM Modi and Nawaz Sharief at Ufa Russia, Mirwaiz attended the Eid Milan.
Sources says that experts of Conflict and Resolution and Political Analysts of South Asia have suggested to the Governments of India and Pakistan to consider the ‘ Hilal Formula’ envisaged in a first ever Roadmap with regard to a durable settlement of Kashmir Dispute as this formula propounded by seasoned leader of Hurriyat Conference , Engineer Hilal Ahmad War in the year 1996 .