Talk to all stakeholders in Kashmir: CPI-M

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) on Friday urged the central government to hold talks with all stakeholders, including separatists, in Jammu and Kashmir to bring peace in the restive Kashmir Valley.

"We should start a dialogue with all the stakeholders. We have done it in the past. We have to do it again," CPI-M General Secretary Sitaram Yechury told reporters after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's all-party meeting over Kashmir here.

The meeting, attended by opposition and ruling party MPs, was held to discuss ways on restoring normalcy in the valley. At least 56 people have been killed and thousands injured in clashes between security forces and protesters in the last five weeks of Kashmir unrest.

The government had earlier ruled out any possibility of talks with separatists till some normalcy is retored in the valley.

Yechury said his party criticised the use of force, including pellet guns, against Kashmiri protesters.

The CPI-M suggested to the government that it should "stop the use of pellet guns and start confidence building measures with the youth", he said.

--IANS

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