PHOTO: SHANKER CHAKRAVARTY

KASHMIR ROUND TABLE: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at a conference on Kashmir in New Delhi on Saturday. The others (from left) are:Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal, Minister of State in the PMO Prithviraj Chavan, Rajya Sabha member Karan Singh, National Conference president Omar Abdullah, Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Tara Chand and Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Muzaffar Beig.

NEW DELHI: Participants at the first round table conference on Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday said the journey towards a consensual solution to the problem was long and required patience, fortitude and the involvement of the people of the State. They expressed the hope that those who stayed away from the conference would participate in future meetings.

At the end of seven-hour deliberations here, presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and attended by a broad spectrum of political groups and representatives of civil society from the State, the participants suggested that a second round table conference be convened soon. Mr. Singh said it could be held in Srinagar in the second week of May.

He asked Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil to form a high-level group of officials to examine all cases of detention and see if it was possible to release all detenus against whom there were no serious cases. "This should be done before the end of March. I am sure this will go a long way in assuaging the feelings of the people [in the State]," he said in his closing remarks.

"It was agreed that the views expressed should contribute to taking forward the resolution process and that the Government will continue its efforts to engage various sections and groups across the entire political spectrum and civil society,'' a brief statement adopted at the end of the conference said.The conference was attended by Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, the former Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Union Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz, National Conference president Omar Abdullah, CPI(M) leader Yusuf Tarigami, Ra jya Sabha member Karan Singh, representatives of the Panun Kashmir and the Kashmiri Samaj and leaders from the Jammu and Ladakh regions.

The separatist conglomerate Hurriyat Conference, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik and People's Conference leader Sajjad Lone, who have had individual meetings with the Prime Minister, stayed away.

There was a broad consensus that the peace process with Pakistan should be carried forward. Emphasis should be laid on people-to-people contacts and opening up trade between the two parts of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state, Dr. Singh said.

In a veiled reference to the killing of four youths in Army firing in Kupwara district, Dr. Singh reaffirmed his Government's commitment to respect the rights of all people. "Every effort will be made that in dealing with terrorism and militancy, no innocent person should suffer. Whenever there is any violation of human rights there must be transparent mechanisms to fix responsibility and to punish those found guilty."

On autonomy and self-rule, Dr. Singh said there were many views. "There is need to evolve a common understanding on autonomy and self-rule for Jammu and Kashmir and I am confident that working together with all groups, both within and outside the mainstream, we can arrive at arrangements within the vast flexibilities provided by the Constitution ... arrangements which provide real empowerment and comprehensive security to all people of the State."

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