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Updated: May 20, 2019 10:08 IST

Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Sunday expressed hope the new government at the Centre would revisit the Kashmir policy and said his organisation was ready to support all efforts by India and Pakistan aimed at ending hostility in the restive state.

A statement by Hurriyat said that Mirwaiz made the comments during a seminar titled ‘The Importance of Dialogue in the Backdrop of Strained Indo-Pak Relations’ in connection with the ongoing “martyr’s week”.

The Mirwaiz said he hoped once the new dispensation in New Delhi takes charge, it would also analyse whether the existing one on the restive state had gone in its favour or instead worsened things on all fronts.

He said Hurriyat was hopeful whosoever takes charge in New Delhi would admit the reality of the Kashmiri dispute and engage with the leadership to end the hostility so that a dignified solution is found to the vexed dispute of Kashmir.

Mirwaiz said he feels the pain whenever any youth is killed in action by security or in encounters. “It was beyond doubt that the gun-wielding local boys were the products of the ongoing oppression and they are getting consumed in the ongoing unresolved conflict,” he said.

The Hurriyat is observing a week-long programme in memory of Mirwaiz’s father Mirwaiz Molvi Mohammad Farooq and another Hurriyat leader Abdul Gani Lone, who were assassinated on May 21 in 1990 and 2002 respectively.

Mirwaiz said the Hurriyat had participated in the dialogue process with the former prime ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh and also the then Pakistani president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf.

“It was Vajpayee who had realised the need for resolving the Kashmir issue as he advocated that Kashmir needs to be dealt with in the ambit of humanity,” he said.

Hurriyat, he said, was ready to support all efforts by India and Pakistan aimed at ending hostility and seeking a peaceful solution to the Kashmir issue.

He termed the present prevailing situation in Kashmir as sensitive and painful stating that there is no letup in the “policies of repression and intimidations as killings, harassment and CASOs (cordon-and-search-operations) continue unabated even in this holy month of Ramadhan”.

Mirwaiz demanded the release of all political prisoners, repeal of Armed Forces (Special Powers) Acts (AFSPA) and taking back all “anti-Kashmiri” measures so that an atmosphere of trust is created in Kashmir.

Another senior Hurriyat leader Abdul Gani Bhat said India and Pakistan must realise the need for resolving the Kashmir issue for the larger interests of the people of South Asia and for that the two nations must take some bold steps.

Bhat urged all the pro-freedom leaders and parties to work for a united Hurriyat like the one in 1993. “Let there be one single platform and a joint strategy so that we achieve our mission collectively,” he said.