New Delhi, Aug 9 (ANI): The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has clarified that Radha Kumar, one of the three interlocutors appointed by the Central Government in the Jammu and Kashmir dialogue process, has not tendered her resignation.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said the interlocutors have completed their visit of Jammu and Kashmir and are busy finalising their report.
The other two interlocutors appointed by the Centre are eminent journalist Dr. Dilip Padgaonkar and former Information Commissioner M M Ansari.
It was earlier reported that Radha Kumar had written a letter to the Union Home Ministry saying that she does not want to be associated with her colleague M M Ansari.
In her letter, Radha Kumar said she would continue to work on her part of the interlocutors' report due end-September, but would not attend any meetings with Ansari or accept any payments made customarily to all interlocutors.
Ansari had criticised Kumar for attending a Kashmir seminar in Europe organised by the Tramboo Centre.
He had also criticised Dr. Dilip Padgaonkar for attending a seminar organised by US-based Kashmiri separatist Ghulam Nabi Fai who was arrested by the FBI for illegally lobbying for Pakistan and ISI.
Ansari, however, when asked about his attacks, told the Indian Express that his working relationship with his colleagues is excellent.
"My working relationship with my colleagues is excellent. And our teamwork is unaffected and is progressing well. But I must confess that both of my colleagues are unhappy with my remarks on their availing of hospitality offered by foreign agencies, before and after their appointment as interlocutors. I have requested them personally to put in the public domain details of their recent foreign visits so as to avoid any media speculation, but to no avail," Ansari told the Indian Express.
"The people of J andK who have lived in violence due to militancy and are suspicious of our intentions due to broken promises, expect us to be truthful in anything we do. This is what bothers me and makes me spend sleepless nights," he added.
In her letter to the Home Minister, Radha Kumar said that she attended the conference in 2006 at the behest of the Centre and was accompanied by G Parthasarathy.
"We were both encouraged to go by the Government of India on the grounds that it was useful for independent Indians to put their views in what was clearly going to be a heavily biased forum taking place in European Parliament...Before going we were briefed by MEA and were in touch with our embassy in Brussels before, during and after the conference," said Radha Kumar.
She added that she had taken a group of people from J andK, including Taj Mohiuddin, Arun Joshi, Pinto Norbu and Nusrat Andrabi to the European Parliament so that "diverse and genuine voices" could be heard.
"New Delhi was aware of this conference," Kumar said.
She said that she had made all this clear to both her colleagues but despite this, Ansari had launched a "smear campaign."
Radha Kumar, however, declined to comment on her note when contacted by The Indian Express, but confirmed that she was "angry and upset" at the charges made by her colleague.
Padgaonkar, when asked about Kumar's letter and Ansari's charges, said: "I don't want this sideshow to distract from the main thing, the actual job we are doing and have done, meeting nearly 5000 people, 600 delegations and having spoken to all shades of opinions in the state." (ANI)
|
|
Comments:
