The Mufti, who said he had requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to convene the third round table meeting on Kashmir, was clear that a solution to the Kashmir issue had to be “all-inclusive”. “The Hurriyat should be part of the process,” he said.

The moderate Hurriyat Conference had not attended the second round table conference held in Srinagar last year. After the meeting, the prime minister had set up five working groups to look into diverse issues such as confidence-building measures across the border, Centre-state relations, rehabilitation of militancy victims and economic development.

The Mufti also spoke about a possible “consultative, cooperative mechanism” between both parts of Kashmir. “We can cooperate on disaster management or hydel power projects,” he said.

On his demand for relocation of armed forces, he said the forces should gradually move back to their barracks. The army is not trained to tackle internal aggression. “Wherever the Army has been replaced by paramilitary forces or the police, the situation has improved,” the Mufti said.