Dr Singh and Gandhi, along with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, had the discussion with Advani on the issue during the State dinner hosted for visiting Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai in New Delhi on Monday.
Although the curfew was lifted on Tuesday from Jammu and the adjoining areas, the region witnessed protest rallies yet again, demanding the removal of Governor N N Vohra and the restoration of forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board.
Curfew was lifted on Friday in Jammu and adjoining areas which witnessed violence during a bandh called by a Hindu outfit to protest the alleged suicide by a man over the Amarnath land row.
'Kashmiris are very adaptable people. They will wait. From India's point of view, I think we have lost a great opportunity. I don't think we should keep talking to Pakistan. We should talk to the Kashmiris. Ultimately, this matter has to be settled between New Delhi and Srinagar,' says A S Dulat, expert on Kashmir.
Fresh violence erupted in Indore on Friday, leading to the imposition of curfew in the entire city, a day after four persons were killed in clashes during the Bharatiya Janata Party Vishwa Hindu Parishad sponsored bandh against the revocation of land to Amarnath shrine board.
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to interfere with the Jammu and Kashmir Government's decision to revoke the transfer of land to Amarnath Shrine Board but directed the authorities to provide security to pilgrims stranded in the state due to the turmoil over the issue.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal on Wednesday warned that they will not allow pilgrims to reach the Ajmer Dargah, where the annual Urs has begun, unless the Jammu and Kashmir government withdraws its latest order revoking the transfer of forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board.Bajrang Dal Rajasthan unit's convenor Mahendra Singh Meena said that Hindu activists of the saffron outfits would block buses carrying pilgrims in Rajasthan during the two-day bandh.
Due to the volatile situation that erupted on Tuesday in the entire Jammu city after the state government revoked the land allotment order to the SASB, the authorities have now deployed more units of paramilitary and police forces in Jammu city. The police were seen asking people to return to their homes in view of the indefinite curfew. The administration is worried about the the deterioration of the situation in Jammu city despite round the clock curfew.
The decision to revoke the order was taken by the state cabinet which met in Srinagar under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Two BJP activists were injured in skirmishes with the police as demonstrators burnt tyres and torched effigies of the governor, Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and Peoples Democratic Party patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the police said.
Rejecting the appeal of Governor N N Vohra and Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, the protesters poured on the streets and thorough fares of the city early Saturday morning, demanding revocation of order under which 39.88 hectares of forest land were transferred to the Amarnath board last month. However, the police action proved futile as the protesters, after dispersing temporarily, reassembled to continue their agitation, they said.
A Central Reserve Police Force jawan was injured in fresh clashes between security forces and protesters here over the controversial land transfer to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board even as life in the city and other major towns of the Kashmir valley remained crippled for the fifth day on Friday.
Life in Srinagar and other major towns of Kashmir valley remained crippled on Wednesday due to a spontaneous strike against the alleged use of force by police. The police personnel allegedly used force against those protesting the transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board.One person was killed and nearly 100 others, including 22 policemen, have been injured in police firing and clashes between stone pelting demonstrators and law enforcing agencies.
About half a dozen senior leaders of both the factions of the Hurriyat Conference were on Monday put under house arrest to prevent them from participating in the scheduled demonstrations against the transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board. However, police raided the Hyderpora residence of chairman of the breakaway HC Syed Ali Shah Geelani several times, who had already left for some undisclosed place.
The annual pilgrimage to the Amarnath shrine will begin on Monday albeit only from the Baltel route as the traditional south route via Pahalgam is still snow-bound.
Curfew remained clamped for the fourth straight day in the Kashmir Valley on Wednesday even as no untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the region.
The Amarnath Yatra Sangharsh Samiti (AYSS) on Thursday asked the local Congress leaders to have the demand for restoration of land to Sri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) conceded by the UPA government or else resign from the party and join the agitation.
The All Party Sangharsh Samiti has rejected the government's decision not to recall Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra, according to Dr Ajay Churangu, one of the Punan Kashmir leaders.Churangu could not attend the all-party meeting in Delhi because of the traffic blockade on the highway.The members of the coordination committee of the All Party Sangharsh Samiti met late on Wednesday evening and discussed the press statement issued by the Centre.
Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Dr Farooq Abullah has defended his son and National Conference chief Omar Abullah's controversial statement on the Amarnath land row -- during the trust vote on July 22. The Jammu and Kashmir government had revoked its order to allot forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board after violent protests against the decision brought life to a standstill in the valley.The Army was called in today and curfew was imposed.
Chairman of the breakaway Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani was again put under house arrest on Thursday to prevent him from taking part in the Friday congregation at the holy Hazratbal shrine.Geelani had given a 'Hazratbal chalo' call to offer special prayers for the 'victory' in the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board forest land issue. A spokesman of the HC, Aiyaz Akbar, told UNI that a large number of police personnel were deployed outside his residence.
The Bharatiya Janata Party has toned down its nationwide protest against the cancellation of allotment of land to the Amarnath Shrine Board and has termed it as an aam hartal. BJP leaders on Wednesday assured that the nation-wide hartal on Thursday would not affect essential services."We are calling it a national strike and not Bharat Bandh," BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad told rediff.com in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Rajnath Singh, president of Bhartiya Janata Party, has called for a nationwide bandh on July 3, to protest against the recall of the cabinet order by Jammu and Kashmir government of the land that was allotted to the Amarnath Shrine board.
Authorities on Friday suspended Amarnath yatra from Jammu in view of the continued strike in Kashmir Valley over transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board. The devotees were not allowed to proceed from Bhagwati Nagar base camp to the Amarnath cave shrine of Lord Shiva in the Kashmir Himalayas.
Till July 7, nearly 82,000 devotees had paid their obeisance at the shrine.
The two-month long annual Hindu pilgrimage to the Himalayan Cave Shrine of Amarnath, which was officially scheduled to begin on Saturday was postponed following incessant rains all along the north and south of Kashmir.
According to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, the ice lingam inside the cave has fully formed this year. There had been apprehensions that the ice lingam may not take form completely owing to global warming and shifting of glaciers.
Ahead of the fourth round of planned talks with a governor's panel, the Shri Amarnath Sangarsh Samiti also said any solution should also give the shrine board exclusive control of the land during the yatra. There was no official word of any peace formula to end the crisis.
VHP International General Secretary Dr Pravin Togadia told a press conference at the VHP's Delhi office, "The agitation is limited to four hours. We are resorting to this to press for our demand that Jammu and Kashmir government rescind its order not to hand over land to the SASB."
Politicians might say that the Amarnath issue is not about religion, but it is all about religion.
The Yatra has been suspended as there has been snowfall at several places.
The green panel ordered removal of iron grills in front of the ice stalagmite resembling the 'Shiva Linga' so that devotees could get a better view of it and said there should be no noise pollution near the sacred structure.
The holy lingam (phallic symbol of Shiva) at the shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas melted 10 days back, Chief Executive Officer (Ecology), Shri Amarnath Shrine Board, Arun Kumar told PTI.
Yet another controversy dogged this year's edition of Amarnath pilgrimage with the state government and the shrine board locking horns over the issue of helicopter services for the affluent pilgrims.
The board will also provide modern shelters made of pre-fabricated material, J&K Governor Sinha added.
"Whether I should perform this or not is what I had said," Mahant said.
The 'charri mubarak', carried by around 500 saints led by its custodian, Mahant Deepinder Giri, reached the shrine, 143 km from Srinagar, around 0845 IST.
Use of plastic bags has been banned in Pahalgam, Baltal and en route to the Amarnath cave shrine as part of a master plan to check environmental damage and introduce eco-friendly facililies for pilgrims
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