Separatist leader seeks new panel on Kashmir

Senior separatist leader Shabir Ahmed Shah on Tuesday suggested setting up a Kashmir committee headed by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee [ Images ] to frame a policy and build consensus in the country on the the Kashmir problem.

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"Formation of a Kashmir committee under the chairmanship of Vajpayee consisting of former prime ministers as members is imperative," Shah, who heads the Democratic Freedom Party, told reporters after a 90-minute meeting with a visiting European Union delegation here.

He said V P Singh [ Images ], I K Gujral, Chandrashekar and H D Deve Gowda [ Images ], Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav [ Images ], Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar [ Images ], former West Bengal [ Images ] chief minister Jyoti Basu and Samata Party leader George Fernandes [ Images ] be made members of the committee and be entrusted the job of mobilising public opinion in the country to resolve the issue.

Welcoming the meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [ Images ] and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf [ Images ] in New York, Shah said it had generated hope among the people in Kashmir, but the spirit needed to be maintained.

"Kashmir is a political issue and needs a political solution to satisfy the demands of Kashmiris," Shah said, reiterating his demand to involve Kashmiris in the talks between India and Pakistan.