Islamabad deviating from Ufa agreement: Rajnath; Delhi’s ‘fanatic approach’ sabotaged talks: Pakistan

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Lucknow/New Delhi, Aug 23: Hitting out at Pak-istan a day after it called off the Indo-Pak NSA-level talks, Union Home Minis-ter Rajnath Singh Sunday said if Pakistan was so keen on raising the Kash-mir issue, why didn't it do so during talks in Ufa even as the Modi government came under fire from Con-gress for its "ham-handed" handling of the situation.

Accusing Pakistan of deviating from the agenda agreed in Ufa between Prime Ministers Nar-endra Modi and Nawaz Sharif, Singh also made it clear that the possibility of any future dialogue will depend on the neighbour.

On Pakistan's claim that Kashmir was the main agenda, the Home Minister said, "Why didn't Pakistan raise the Kash-mir issue in Ufa in Russia when the two Prime Minis-ters met last month? Why was it not decided earlier that it would be part of NSA-level talks? It was never an issue on agenda."

Describing the cancel-lation of talks as unfortu-nate, he however, under-lined that India stands for dialogue and cordial rela-tionship with Pakistan.

"The cancellation of NSA-level talks between India and Pakistan is unfortunate. India is in

favour of dialogue," Singh told reporters on the side-lines of a function here.PTI ADDS FROM ISLAMABAD

Pakistan Sunday accused the Narendra Modi government of "sabo-taging" the NSA-level talks with its "fanatic approach" and said its "negative attitude" was aimed at disrupting peace in the region.

Defence Minister Kha-waja Muhammad Asif said, "Negative attitude of Modi government was to disrupt peace in the

region," state-run Radio Pakistan quoted him as saying.

He said, "India sabo-taged the Pak-India talks scheduled to be held in New Delhi today due to its fanatic approach".

Claiming that Pakistan was "serious" in holding the talks with India, he said this was the best way to resolve bilateral issues.

However, the "pre-con-ditions put by India for the talks were not acceptable to Pakistan", Asif said.

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Aborted NSA talks put fresh spotlight on KashmirUS, UN step in with ‘suggestions’; Disputed territory remains a dangerous flash point: NYT

GK POLITICAL BUREAU

Srinagar, Aug 23: The National Security Advisor-level talks between India and Paki-stan—which have

now been called off—put a fresh spot-light on Kashmir, after the recent issue of killings along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. While the US urged India and Pakistan to resolve all bilateral issues, including “disput-ed” Kashmir, in a direct manner and come up with a “common approach to resolve them”, the UN chief asked both nations to “address their differ-ences through dialogue.”

CM ‘disappointed’ over cancellation of NSA talksUrges Pak to ‘respond to warm gestures of India’

GK NEWS NETWORK

Srinagar, Aug 23: Expressing his disappointment over “abrupt can-cellation” of a meeting between National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan, the J&K Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed Sunday hoped that this break in dialogue would be temporary and that the

‘Stubborn India kills peace hopes’Pak media blames New Delhi for cancellation of talks

Islamabad, Aug 23: Pakistani media Sunday blamed India for the cancel-lation of first-ever NSA-level talks by

setting "pre-conditions" ahead of National Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz's visit to New Delhi. All leading newspapers carried the story about cancellation of NSA-level talks on the front page, highlighting the Indian "pre-conditions" which, according to local media, led to the breakdown of parleys.

In a front page headline "NSAs' talks cancelled over Indian conditions", the Dawn blamed Indian conditions for cancellation of talks.

"Amid intense bickering, the govern-ment decided on Saturday to cancel the planned meeting of national security advisers with India, citing New Delhi's refusal to allow an expanded agenda and

US ‘disappointed’Washington, Aug 23: Hours after Pakistan called off the Indo-Pak NSA-level talks, the US Sunday said it was "disappointed" with the development and encouraged the two sides to resume formal dia-logue soon. "We are disappoint-ed the talks will not happen this weekend and encourage India and Pakistan to resume formal dialogue soon," State Department spokes-man John Kirby told PTI.

The spokesperson, however, said the "constructive" interaction between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Ufa, Russia, was

Did Shah cross India’s ‘new red line’ on talks with Pakistan?First separatist to reach Delhi for meeting with NSA Aziz

ABID BASHIR

Srinagar, Aug 23: It was the senior sepa-ratist leader Shabir Ahmad Shah again who crossed India’s “new red line” on the NSA-level talks with Pakistan that were called off by Islamabad last night.

Shah, who was first to reach New Delhi for a meeting with Pakistan Nation-al Security Advisor Sartaj Aziz, was detained immediately after landing at the Delhi airport. This is the second time that Shah has become the first separatist to reach New Delhi soon after an invita-tion from Pakistan for a meeting or talks. In March this year, he was first to reach New Delhi on invitation related to obser-vance of Pakistan Day at the Pakistan High Commission. Shah was taken to a guest house in South Delhi yesterday

3 militants die in 10-hr Handwara gunfight: PolicePara commando, soldier injured; Hundreds attend funeral of slain gunmen

March 2015Pakistan High

Commissioner Abdul Basit meets Hurriyat

Conference (G) chairman, Syed Ali

Geelani, in New Delhi and invites him to

Pakistan Day. Geelani calls for resolution of

Kashmir dispute in accordance with the wishes of its people,

during the meeting.

July 2011Pak Foreign Minister

Hina Rabbani Khar meets Hurriyat Conference

leaders at the Pakistani High Commission in New

Delhi. Those who met Khar included Geelani,

Mirwaiz, Abdul Ghani Bhat, Aga Syed and

Bilal Lone.

March 2015Senior separatist leaders

including Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq,

Muhammad Yasin Malik and Prof Abdul Gani Bhat attend Pakistan

Day Celebrations at Pakistan High Commission in New

Delhi. Later, Geelani, Bhat-led delegation, Mirwaiz hold one-to-

one meetings with Basit during which he sought their help for

“building an environment of peace in the sub-continent.”

April 2007Pak Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz meets a five-member delegation

of Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and a two-member delegation of

Democratic Freedom Party led by its chief Shabir Shah at the

Pakistan House in New Delhi. The talks reportedly revolve around

Kashmir resolution.

August 2014Geelani, Mirwaiz, Malik

and Shabir Ahmad Shah meet Pakistan High Commissioner in New Delhi ahead

of Foreign Secretary-level talks. Irked by the

move, India calls off the talks four days before.

Islamabad defended the move, saying “Kashmiris

are legitimate stakeholders.”

January 2006Pakistan President

Pervez Musharraf meets Hurriyat leaders Bilal Ghani Lone of the

People’s Conference, Abdul Ghani Bhatt and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq,

in Islamabad.

November 2013Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif’s

foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz holds talks with separatist

leaders at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi. The

talks were held with Mirwaiz, Malik and Geelani, as well as

Dukhtaran-e- Millat chairperson Asiya Andrabi. Aziz was in India

to attend 2-day ASEM (Asia Europe Meeting). BJP, then in

opposition, called the meeting as “diplomatic blunder.”

April 2005Separatist leaders, including

Mirwaiz, Geelani, Malik and Bhat meet President Pervez

Musharraf in New Delhi.

July 2012Geelani, Mirwaiz,

Malik meet Pakistan Foreign

Secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani

who was in India for talks

with his Indian counterpart,

Ranjan Mathai. Source: News Reports

WHEN PAK LEADERS MET

SEPARATISTS

SHAHID RAFIQ

Kupwara, Aug 23: Three militants died and two army men including an officer were injured in a 10-hour gun-battle in north Kash-mir’s Handwara tehsil on Sunday, police said.

The encounter had started late last night when a joint party of Army’s 21 Rashtriya Rifles and Spe-cial Operations Group of J&K Police launched a search operation in Khum-

hoora forests of Zachalda-ra area, some 18 kms from Handwara Tehsil, follow-ing information about the presence of militants there, a police official said.

“At 8 pm yesterday, a search party of 21 RR and SOG of Handwara was fired upon by militants in Krum-hoora forests, adjacent to Zachaldara village. In the initial firing, one militant died. The area was imme-diately cordoned and rein-

See 3 militants die...on Pg-12

ED issues fresh summons to Shabir ShahNew Delhi, Aug 23: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued fresh summons to Kashmiri separat-ist leader Shabir Shah, at present in Delhi, for questioning in connec-tion with a decade-old case of alleged financ-ing through 'hawala channel'.

The summons have been sent at the south Delhi guest house where Shah, the Chairman of Democratic Freedom Party of Jammu and Kashmir, has been kept

Habib Naqash/GK

Separatists blame Delhi’s ‘stubbornness’Mainstream politicians slam Pakistan

ABID BASHIR

Srinagar, Aug 23: Separatist leaders Sunday blamed “Delhi’s stubborn-ness” for cancellation of NSA-level talks between India and Pakistan.

Hurriyat Conference led by Syed Ali Geelani termed the cancellation of NSA talks as unfortunate. But, it said, “at the end of the day, it is a diplomatic victory for us as well as Pakistan.”

Hurriyat (G) spokesman Ayaz Akbar said “a message has gone to the world that Kashmir issue is not a bilateral territo-rial dispute between India and Pakistan and that people of J&K are a principal party to it.” He said the “fanatic approach adopted by Delhi is not justified.”

Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Lib-eration Front Muhammad Yasin Malik said he wanted to clarify to Minister for External Affairs that Kashmiri people are

Police flex muscles on TeH activists, several injuredGeelani hits out at Chief Minister, says JK ruled by New Delhi

ABID BASHIR

Srinagar, Aug 23: At least a dozen members and activ-ists of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat (TeH) were injured Sunday when police cane-charged them here and disallowed them to observe the party’s Foundation Day. Slam-ming the police action, Geelani, who is the Chair-man of TeH, hit out at Chief Minister Mufti Muham-mad Sayeed for his slogan ‘Goli Say Nahi Boli Say Baat Banti Hai.’

Witnesses said hundreds of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat activ-ists reached the party head-quarters at Hyderpora to participate in the Founda-tion Day Ceremony. But,

they said, police had sealed all roads leading to Gee-lani’s residence.

“We were supposed to commemorate the day on August 7 but couldn’t due to some reasons. Today, we had identified a space adja-cent to Geelani’s residence but police resorted to brute

force on TeH members and disallowed the function,” said Hurriyat (G) spokes-man Ayaz Akbar.

He said it was not the general public that had assembled at Hyderpora but Tehreek-e-Hurriyat activ-ists and members.

See ED issues...on Pg-12

See Police flex...on Pg-12

See Stubborn India kills...on Pg-12 See Did Shah cross India’s...on Pg-12 See Aborted NSA talks...on Pg-12 See India, Pak...on Pg-12

See CM ‘disappointed’...on Pg-12

See US ‘disappointed’...on Pg-12

See Separatists blame Delhi’s...on Pg-12

India, Pak trade charges over cancellation of NSA talks

MONDAY, August 24, 2015 08, Zul Qaadah, 1436 AH 28th Year of publication

Published from Srinagar | Jammu Regd. No. JK NP-6/SKGPO-2012-2014 Vol: 28 No. 234 Pages: 20 Rs. 5.00

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