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Hurriyat formally invited for talks (Go To Top)

         New Delhi: The Centre today formally extended an invitation to a faction of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) led by Maulana Abbas Ansari for a second round of talks with Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani on March 27. The invitation letter, which was handed over to Ansari this morning, said: "You are cordially invited for the second round of talks to be held in Delhi on March 27." The invitation came a day after Advani had said that he would be holding the second round of talks with the separatist unit after the completion of the first phase of his 'Bharat Uday Yatra'. Speaking in Sholapur before moving onto Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, Advani had said: "My next round of talks with the Hurriyat leaders will be in Delhi when I am there on March 27 for a day after completing the first leg of this Bharat Uday Yatra on March 26 in Amritsar."

          From the Central government's point of view, the announcement dispels all doubts about the talks not taking place at all, following a reported threat by the APHC last month that it was considering withdrawing from the dialogue over charges that the Centre was not doing enough to curb alleged human rights violations by Indian security forces in Kashmir. The last round of talks between the Indian government and a moderate faction of the APHC took place in New Delhi on January 22.