Not averse to meeting of 2 NC MPs

Ishfaq Tantry

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, September 11

The Jammu and Kashmir government has told the High Court that it is not averse to meeting of two National Conference MPs with their detained leaders Dr Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah provided no politics is played by them after the meeting.

Acting on a petition by two NC MPs —Justice (retired) Hasnain Massodi and Akbar Lone — who had sought a meeting with their detained leaders, the High Court on September 6 had in its verbal instructions had observed that before proceeding into the matter, it is necessary to ascertain whether the two MPs have been prevented from meeting their party leaders as alleged by them in the petition. Accordingly Senior Additional Advocate General Javed Iqbal was asked by the court to “seek instructions from the state authorities” by next week. “We submitted before the court today that the government is not against the individuals meeting the detainees,” Javed Iqbal submitted before the court today, adding that the petitioners had never approached the police authorities concerned to seek a meeting with Farooq and Omar, as was submitted in the petition. “The government is not against the meeting but they should not exploit it and use their meeting with them to vitiate the atmosphere in the Valley,” he submitted, adding that the government had no problem if the meeting was allowed by the SC on the same lines as in case of Sitaram Yechuray .