All-party delegation to Kashmir to include Jaitley, Paswan and Owaisi

The all-party delegation to violence-hit Jammu and Kashmir will include senior cabinet ministers including Arun Jaitley and Ram Vilas Paswan as well as opposition leaders like Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM, sources said.

Among others the delegation would also include Congress leaders from both houses of Parliament - Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mallikarjun Kharge.

The delegation would be led by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

The government has already indicated that members of the all-party delegation during their two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir beginning September 4, will be free to meet any leader or individual or groups "including separatists".

The delegation will have 28 parliamentarians and senior government officials. Other members will include union Minister Jitendra Singh, Congress leader Ambika Soni, Sharad Yadav (JD-U), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), D. Raja (CPI), NCP's Tariq Anwar and Trinamool Congress member Saugata Roy.

Two major Uttar Pradesh-based parties Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party have supported the move to send a delegation to Kashmir, but said they would not nominate any party leader to go to the valley.

The decision to send the all-party delegation was taken at an all-party meeting on August 12 chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Other members will include Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut and Anandrao Adsul, TDP leader Thota Narasimham, Shiromani Akali Dal's Prem Singh Chandumajra, Biju Janata Dal's Dilip Tirkey, AIUDF's Badaruddin Ajmal, Muslim League's E. Ahamed, N.K. Premchandran (RSP), P Venugopal (AIADMK), Tiruchi Siva (DMK), Y.B. Subba (YSR-Congress), Jaiprakash Yadav (RJD) and Dharamveer Gandhi (AAP).

Official sources, said that Home Minister Rajnath Singh's meeting will be "restricted" and he is likely to interact with only those who are keen to discuss and help resolve all issues within the framework of the Constitution.

The delegation members will be given a presentation on September 3 about the tour by a team of senior officials from the Union Home ministry.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar and Minister of State in PMO Jitendra Singh are expected to be present when top officials of the Home Ministry will make the presentation.

The visit of the all-party delegation to the valley is aimed at holding meetings with local leaders aiming to stop the unrest that was sparked off in Jammu and Kashmir following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani on July 8.

--IANS

nd/rn