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J&K L-G Manoj Sinha holds meeting with political leaders ahead of Amarnath Yatra
Soon after the meeting, leaders told reporters that the LG sought cooperation from political parties in ensuring smooth conduct of the Amarnath Yatra.
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday held a meeting with leaders of mainstream political parties of the Union territory at the Raj Bhavan to discuss the prevailing situation, including smooth conduct of the Amarnath Yatra that starts on Thursday.
“Met representatives of political parties & discussed arrangements and management of Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra. The sacred pilgrimage strengthens our faith in the goodness of mankind & its successful conduct is responsibility of every citizen of J&K UT,” Sinha’s office posted in a tweet along with photos of the leaders who attended the meeting at the Raj Bhavan.
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, J&K Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Ravinder Raina and Congress president GA Mir were among the notable leaders who attended the meeting. Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, however, skipped the meeting.
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Earlier, invitations were extended to Abdullah, Mufti, Raina, Mir, Peoples Conference chairman Sajjad Lone, Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari and Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami among others.
“All the senior leaders in the meeting speaking in one voice observed that Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra is like a big festival, a celebration of Kashmiriyat for common man of J&K and each & every citizen of UT will ensure warm hospitality & comfort of the pilgrims,” the LG’s office said in another tweet.
Soon after the meeting, leaders told reporters that the LG sought cooperation from political parties in ensuring smooth conduct of the yatra.
“The senior leaders assured the LG of their support,” said BJP chief Raina. “They said Amarnath Yatra is part of cultural heritage of Kashmir and people will make it a success.”
J&K Congress chief Mir said the leaders also highlighted the need to ease the restrictions along the highway where the yatra will pass. “We told the LG about the need to look into the stringent measures. There are emergency cases which need to be considered,” he added.
Earlier in the day, both the PDP and the NC said they were not aware about the agenda of the meeting.
“If there were something to be discussed, an agenda should have been set for the meeting,” PDP chief spokesperson Suhail Bukhari said. “For a meeting in the evening that is supposed to be a serious affair, the invitation is sent in the morning. What a mockery! By the way what happened to the outcome of the all parties meeting chaired by @PMOIndia in which @OfficeOfLGJandK and @HMOIndia were also present?”
NC chief Abdullah, who reached Srinagar from New Delhi on Wednesday, said: “I have received the card but the agenda is not mentioned. I will go there and find out what is it all about.”
On Wednesday morning, LG Manoj Sinha flagged off the first batch of pilgrims for the annual Amarnath Yatra from the Yatri Niwas base camp at Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu. The pilgrims will proceed towards Pahalgam and Baltal base camps in Kashmir.
