Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the government was ready to hold dialogue with the Hurriyat Conference leadership if...

Home Minister Rajnath Singh today said the government was ready to hold dialogue with the Hurriyat Conference leadership if the separatists come forward for talks. Singh, however, made it clear that so far there has been no indication from the Hurriyat that it was ready for peace talks with the government. "I have already said that we are ready for dialogue with all stakeholders in Kashmir. If Hurriyat comes forward for talks, we don't mind talking to them. Whoever wants to talk with us, we are ready for talks," he told a TV channel here.

Hurriyat Conference leadership

On whether there was any indication from the separatist's leadership for peace dialogue with the government, Singh said, "There has been no indication so far."  The government's special representative Dineshwar Sharma is holding talks with a cross-section of people in Jammu and Kashmir, the Home Minister said. Singh's comments came days after the government had announced the suspension of operations against the militants in Jammu and Kashmir during the holy month of Ramzan that began on May 17.

Centre's special representative for Kashmir, Dineshwar Sharma

Past attempts to initiate dialogue with the Hurriyat had failed after the separatist's amalgam demanded a declaration of Kashmir as "disputed" and involvement of Pakistan in the dialogue.