In a U-turn,Pak withdraws invite to four separatists

The withdrawal of the invite to the four followed resentment among moderate separatists against Islamabads picking and choosing leaders for travel to the country and overriding Mirwaizs prerogative to select his own team. Pakistan had directly invited senior moderate leaders Shabir Shah and Agha Syed Hassan. Earlier,Hurriyat staples for such visits Prof Abdul Gani Bhat and Bilal Gani Lone had been overlooked.

Similarly,among the hardliners,Islamabad had invited Kashmir High Court Bar Association president Mian Qayoom and women separatist Asiya Andrabi,who are not a part of Geelanis faction.

But even limiting the invite to the top three is no less a recasting of the relationship between Islamabad and the separatists. In a remarkable departure from the policy of former President Pervez Musharraf,Islamabad this time has tried to maintain a degree of parity between the various separatist leaders irrespective of their moderate or hawkish affiliations. For example,Mirwaiz is no longer the sole chairman of Hurriyat Conference as he was earlier addressed but the head of one faction only. Geelani,who in earlier invites was referred only as a buzurg rehnuma veteran leader has now again been addressed as the Hurriyat chairman.

It is now believed that Islamabads real objective in limiting invitations to Mirwaiz,Geelani and Malik is to try and get the splintered separatists to act together,if not actually bring them together. But with the differences between them apparently irreconcilable,such a prospect seems unlikely to be realised.

Geelani,now decisively rehabilitated by Islamabad,has rejected the possibility of unity with his separatist counterparts unless they shun the path of compromise and return to the rigid,traditional separatist stand on Kashmir.

Recently,Geelani reiterated his position on Kashmir by asserting that Kashmiris will not accept any compromise and will continue to pursue a settlement in line with United Nations resolution on Kashmir.