The SAARC parliamentarians’ conference today dropped its reference to the Kashmir issue in the draft declaration and agreed to leave it to bilateral negotiations between India and Pakistan.

The development came few hours before the conference was slated to approve the “Shimla Declaration”—a draft of which had already been circulated to the delegates. However, after an effective intervention by the Indian team, particularly MP Dinesh Trivedi, a committee was nominated to look into the issue. The committee later unanimously recommended not to make any reference to the Kashmir issue in the Shimla Declaration.

Imtiaz Alam, secretary general of the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA), which organised the two-day conference, said: “It has been unanimously resolved by the committee that reference to Kashmir will be dropped from the draft. The issue will remain a bilateral matter between the two nations and there is no need for third party intervention. The draft has been changed and it will remain purely on the lines of Bhurban Declaration of 2005.”

During most of the conference, the delegates from Pakistan—both parliamentarians and journalists—tried to keep the focus on Kashmir. Maulana Fazlur Rehman, leader of Pakistan’s opposition alliance, said resolving the dispute was integral to lasting peace between the two neighbours, who also happen to be the two largest nations in the group.