In a significant move, separatists have decided to hold talks with Kashmiri Pandit migrants to discuss their return to the Valley, marking their first "serious attempt" to bring back the community which was forced to leave over 26 years back due to militancy.
Making the announcement during his sermons after the Friday prayers at the Jamia Masjid here, moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said there is no precondition for the return of Pandits who are "part and parcel" of Kashmiri culture and ethos and they can support any political ideology while being in the Valley.
"We have decided to form a joint committee from the resistance (separatist) camp — both groups of Hurriyat Conference and Jammu & Kasmir liberation Front (JKlF) led by Mohammad Yasin Malik -- which will interact with members of the Kashmiri Pandit community in the state and elsewhere as part of efforts to pave way for their return to Kashmir," he said.
Mirwaiz said the joint committee would hear out the Kashmiri Pandits to understand their reservations about returning to their homes in the Valley.