Srinagar

The Union Government’s “Special Representative” Dineshwar Sharma, who was appointed to initiate a dialogue in Jammu and Kashmir with all “stakeholders” on October 23, arrived in Srinagar on Monday.

The interlocutor is scheduled to stay in Kashmir valley for three days and and then travel to Jammu region for two days to talk to various political parties, and other organisations, individuals and opinion makers, J&K government officials said.

To begin with, Sharma today met a number of deputations and deliberated with them on various issues.

Among those who met Sharma include Youth Sports Forum Qamarwari, City FM owner Tariq Bhat, Students Association Pattan, Youth Sports Fraternity led by Mughammad Yousuf, Gujar Association led by Muhammad Yousuf Poswal, Peace Forum Ganderbal led by Peer Yousuf, Shikara Association and Youth Forum Kupwara.

Pertinently, the resistance leadership comprising of Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik have termed Sharma’s appointment as “time buying exrecise” and “an exercise in futility”.

Chief Minister Mehbooba, immediately after the appointment of Sharma had said that dialogue is the need of the hour and the only way forward.

On Sunday Sharma told reporters in New Delhi that he does not have a “magic wand” but “my efforts have to be judged with sincerity and not through the prism of the past”.

The former Intelligence Bureau director added that no one should jump to conclusions before the process of talks with various stakeholders in Kashmir begins.

Former Chief Minister and National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah on Sunday that he does not expect much from the process being started by appointing a new interlocutor.

Sharma, who is originally from Bihar and was a Kerala-cadre IPS officer of the 1979 batch, held the country’s top-most post for a police officer from 2014 to 2016.

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