The Jammu and Kashmir government while reiterating the urgency for the dialogue over Kashmir crises on Tuesday welcomed Prime Minister’s statement, saying the Kashmir issue must not be shelved as was done post 2008 and 2010 unrest. The government spokesman and state’s education minister Naeem Akhtar told KNS over phone that the Prime Minister Modi’s statement on Kashmir is “worth to hail” and “we have welcomed his approach over reaching out to the perturbed people of Kashmir.” Akhtar said that dialogue has always been the only way to get Kashmir out of crises and allow its inhabitants to witness peaceful times. “We have always strived for the resumption of the dialogue process to get things back in order. It has been our long pending demand. We want dialogue to take place in a most conducive manner,” Akhtar said while preferring not to elaborate further.
However, the government spokesman asked the GOI that after normalcy’s return in Kashmir, issues must not be thrown into the cold storage as was done after the 2008 and 2010 agitations which claimed lives of more than 200 people. “We want the dialogue process to continue- we want it to gain momentum even when the present crises are resolved and things return to normalcy in the coming days,” Akhtar told KNS.He added that the Prime Minister’s statement would help in a long way to make things better in Kashmir and pacify peoples’ anger. Pertinently, Kashmir has been reeling under crises after the death of a militant commander, Burhan Wani, during a gun battle on July 8, this year. As curfew continues to remain in place for more than a month in Valley, more than 55 people have lost their lives during the protest demonstrations that have been taking place across the region. (KNS)