Farooq meets PM, wants dialogue with all 'stakeholders'

National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah today met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here and pressed for starting a dialogue with "all stakeholders who are willing to talk" to defuse the volatile situation in Kashmir.
It was the first meeting between Abdullah, a former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, and Modi after the latter assumed office.
There should be a dialogue with "all stakeholders who are willing to talk" to defuse the volatile situation in Kashmir, he told the Prime Minister.
Abdullah also raised the problems faced by the people living along the Line of Control and International Border because of cross-border shelling and firing and said they should be relocated immediately as tension continued to mount.

He said the Prime Minister gave him a patient hearing and was receptive to the suggestions he made.
"I am sure that the Prime Minister will urgently address all the issues that have been flagged by me and others from the state," he said after the meeting.

The National Conference chief extended complete support to "all effective steps" that the Centre may take to bring relief to the people in the state.
"Education and tourism sectors are the biggest sufferers today. The state government is taking no steps to bring any relief to the common man. Now its up to the Centre to step in and ask its alliance partner (PDP) to deliver on ground," Abdullah told PTI after the meeting.

The former Chief Minister said the National Conference had played the role of a constructive opposition party and would continue to do so.
"We are willing to do anything for the people of the state who have been victims of unrest for over three months now.
"The education sector has suffered. Tourism industry, which is the mainstay of the economy, has been hit badly...I have requested to take into consideration all these factors and make attempts to bring some relief to the people in the state," he said.
"The meeting took place in the most cordial atmosphere and the Prime Minister was equally concerned about the situation in the state," the NC leader said.

As many as 85 people, including two policemen, have been killed and thousands others injured in the unrest in the Valley triggered by the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani on July 8. Around 5,000 security forces personnel have also been injured in clashes.