Geelani refuses to meet govt envoy

Leader of the breakaway faction of the Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani [ Images ] has refused to meet Union Textiles Secretary Wajahat Habibullah, who was tasked by the Centre to bring non-Hurriyat separatists to the negotiating table.

Habibullah had on Monday spoken to Geelani on the phone and expressed his desire to meet the leader of the separatist amalgam.

"There is no scope for a bilateral dialogue as history has witnessed that bilateral negotiations have failed to resolve the Kashmir [ Images ] issue," a spokesman of the breakaway Hurriyat faction sid after a five-hour long meeting to discuss the offer.