Address 'dil ki doori' between New Delhi, J&K: Mirwaiz to Centre

Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday urged the Centre to address 'dil ki doori' between New Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir through engagement, saying violence or use of force cannot resolve issues.

Addressing the Friday congregation at the historic Jamia Masjid here, Mirwaiz also welcomed the united stand of the MPs from Kashmir in Parliament.

"A few days back, in Parliament, there was a debate on the India-Pakistan war after the heinous Pahalgam incident. Different views were put forward by different political parties of India regarding the war, its purpose and success or failure," he said.

He said very few MPs, and mostly in the opposition, talked of the human aspect of the war, its costs involved and its correlation to J&K, “which reflects the mindset and mood of the times".

The three MPs from J&K -- Mian Altaf, Engineer Rashid and Aga Ruhullah -- were the only ones to highlight the "deep concerns and plight of the people at the epicentre of the basic problem and the current debate," he added.

Mirwaiz said the three MPs were speaking with passion and pain about the "disempowerment and dispossession of the people of J&K and expressing the sentiments of the people of J&K that we have all along been talking about".

"It is good to see that on these matters, all are on the same page," he said.

The Hurriyat chairman said he can only hope that what the three MPs said was heard by those in power in New Delhi, "and if they really want to lessen 'dil ki doori', they must pay heed to it".

"I have always believed that neither war nor violence nor use of force can solve problems and lead to peace and prosperity, which the billions of people in the Indian subcontinent seek, and the swathes of poor in this region deserve. Engagement at all levels is a far cheaper and evolved alternative," he said. PTI