Modi invitation to Sharif will help move Indo-Pak dialogue on Kashmir: Umar Farooq

Awami Action Committee chairman and of one of the two key factions of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Saturday expressed hope that the invitation to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif would set the ball rolling for a dialogue between India and Pakistan to solve the Kashmir tangle.

"Hope the dialogue between Pakistan and India will be given shape which will pave way for talks on Kashmir. People in India and Pakistan have given a strong mandate to respective governments. If they have will, they can solve Kashmir issue," Farooq said.

"We hope for a sustained dialogue and a time bound initiative for solution to Kashmir issue. Hurriyat is always ready to make a positive contribution to make solution to vexed issues," Farooq added.

Sharif has accepted India's invitation to attend the swearing-in ceremony of prime minister-designate Narendra Modi on Monday evening.

Television channels had earlier quoted Sharif's media advisor Tariq Azim, as saying that Sharif will fly to New Delhi for the event.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Sartaz Aziz is also expected to accompany him.

Nawaz Sharif will also call on President Pranab Mukherjee during his visit to Delhi and hold bilateral talks with Modi on the sidelines of the oath-taking ceremony, according to Pakistan Government sources.

India has invited leaders of all South Asian countries, including Nawaz Sharif to Modi's oath-taking ceremony scheduled for May 26.

The swearing-in ceremony, to be held at the forecourt of the historic Rashtrapati Bhavan, is likely to be attended by as many as 3,000 guests, the report added.