Will be part of all-party Kashmir delegation: BJP
By IANSWednesday, September 15, 2010
NEW DELHI - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be part of the all-party delegation that will visit Kashmir and will support talks within the ambit of the constitution, party spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said Wednesday after a key meet on the crisis in the state.
“If an all-party delegation goes to Kashmir, BJP will be represented in that delegation,” Prasad told reporters here after the all-party meet on Kashmir chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
“If any dialogue takes place within the framework of the Indian constitution after abjuring violence, BJP will give a constructive contribution,” he said.
Prasad said that BJP reiterated its stand that there could not be any dilution of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA).
“We cannot ignore the fact that in the present situation of J&K, cross-border terrorism is abetted by elements of Pakistan,” he said, adding: “We are very clear and categorical that our stand is in the national interest.”
The BJP spokesperson added that his party was opposed “to any demands of autonomy (for Kashmir)”.
The over five-hour long meeting was called to discuss measures to defuse the volatile situation in the Valley, where 88 people, mainly teenagers and youth, have died in violent protests since June 11.
It was decided at the meet that an all-party delegation will visit the troubled Kashmir Valley to “meet all sections of people and gather all shades of opinions”, Home Minister P. Chidambaram said.
The meeting, attended by top leaders of various parties, including Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and BJP leaders L.K. Advani and Nitin Gadkari, decided to gain a first-hand impression of the state before deciding on any major measure to restore normalcy.
The meeting took no decision on the withdrawal of the AFSPA.
