AMU's Kashmiri students decide to skip meeting CM

The AMU students from Kashmir on Friday decided against meeting Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday to discuss "advantages" of the nullification of Article 370, saying the matter concerns the Centre and state government has "no say" in it.

"The issue of abrogation of Article 370 or ending jammu and Kashmir's statehood concerns the Central Government and the UP chief minister has no say in this matter," said Mubashir Hussain Shah, speaking on behalf of the Kashmiri students.

"Had Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah invited us, we could have certainly considered putting forward our viewpoints," added Shah, who had unsuccessfully contested for the post of AMU students' union president last year.

Chief Minister Adityanath had on Wednesday invited AMU students from Kashmir to discuss in a meeting with him on Saturday the positive fallouts of the nullification of the Article 370 and the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status.

"It is strange that Yogi ji now wishes to enlighten us about the advantages of abrogation of the Article 370 more than six weeks after taking this step. Yes, we would have willingly met him, had he invited us to discuss it before taking the step," said Shah.

The Kashmiri students' leader said they have "unanimously" decided to skip the chief minister's meeting.

"No bonafide Kashmiri student intends to meet Yogi ji tomorrow. If some other persons choose to meet him, it will purely be in his personal capacity," said Shah in reply to a question.

There are over 1300 students from Kashmir valley studying in AMU.

Kashmiri students from different districts of the state have been extended invitations through magistrates to share their views at an interactive session with the chief minister.

For the past three days, senior district officials here had been meeting some representatives of Kashmiri students in this connection, without disclosing what transpired in their meetings.

Explaining Kashmiri students' rational behind declining the chief minister's invitation to hold talks, another student leader Waseem Makai said, "We are deeply anguished by reports coming out from the Valley suggesting that more than 13,000 youths have been picked up by security forces after August 5."