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More Kashmiri separatists may be freed

Onkar Singh in New Delhi

The Union government may release some more Kashmiri separatist politicians who are in detention in Jodhpur to create an atmosphere conducive for talks, a source close to Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani indicated to rediff.com in an informal chat.

"We have released three top Hurriyat leaders -- Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Abdul Gani Bhatt and Moulvi Abbas Ansari -- to test the reaction. We have made an offer for talks. It is for them to react now and tell us how they feel about it," he said. "There are 12 more leaders in detention at the moment, including people like Abdul Gani Lone and Yasin Malik."

Reacting to the demand made by two leading militant outfits in Jammu and Kahmir, the Hizbul Mujahideen and the Lashkar-e-Toiba, for the release of all those who have been detained in various jails, the source ruled out the release of terrorists. "The home minister has made it clear that no one who is involved in violence will be released," he said.

After the Chatti Singhpora massacre, the militants were looking for an escape route to bail themselves out and that is why they are asking their friends in politics to talk to the Government of India to initiate talks so that they can find a face-saving device. "You must have noticed the statements of some of the political leaders from the valley. They are talking about a peace initiative. Our offer of talks with the political leaders in the valley is not new. We have been holding talks with the Naga insurgents in Nagaland, Bodos in Assam. So why can't we talk to political leaders from Kashmir? But our conditions are the same that we have told the others. The talks have to be within the framework of the Indian Constitution and those who want to join the talks must give up violence and declare their allegiance to India's unity and integrity."

"The Hurriyat leaders have been in Delhi for more than three days now and they have not made any provocative statements so far. Even if they make provocative statements, we will understand that because they have been in detention and have to talk in harsh tones to impress the people back in the valley. Though the government did not put any restrictions on who they should meet and who not, the Government of India did not approve of their meeting Pakistani High Commissioner Ashraf Jahangir Qazi a day after their release from jail. This has lowered the credibility of the Hurriyat leaders in government circles," the source said.

He refused to say whether the Hurriyat leaders had been released at the request of Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah or at the Centre's own initiative.

Another senior official in the home ministry told rediff.com that the militants and major political parties like the Hurriyat Conference have refrained from reacting positively to the home minister's offer. "We want to give them time to think about the offer before taking any further step," he said.

Journalists from the Kashmir valley believe Abdullah has been upset with the Centre's move to hold talks with the Hurriyat leaders because they have still not given up their pro-Pakistan attitude. What is more, the offer has come at a time when Abdullah is struggling to get out of a tight situation that has arisen out of the counter-insurgency drive launched by the security forces after the massacre of 35 Sikhs in Chatti Singhpora.

"The government couldn't have come out for talks at a worse moment. The offer has made Abdullah realise that he is on sticky ground and that is why he ordered the exhumation of the bodies of the five militants killed in an encounter to prove to the people that he had nothing to do with it. His offer to get the matter investigated by a retired judge of the Supreme Court of India [Justice S R Pandayan] and also bring the Chatti Singhpora massacre under its jurisdiction is yet another attempt to prove that he means business. Until the government released the Hurriyat leaders he was the lone politician the government was talking to in the valley. Now he has rivals. He is a politician first and last and he has to survive," said one Kashmir watcher.

Special Home Secretary (J&K) T R Kakkar expressed surprise when asked about the release of the next batch of politicians. "Believe me, I know nothing about i. I know what I am told to do. If something has transpired at the political level, then I am not privy to the decision. I come into the picture when the home minister wants me," he said.

The picture is still far from being clear. Nobody but the home minister can say when the talks will be held. "We are government servants who merely carry out orders when they come," said a source in the ministry.

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