The Central government appointed interlocutor Dineshwar Sharma Monday reached Srinagar on his four day visit.
During the visit, Sharma, the former IB Chief, will be meeting around 60 delegations.
Sources told KNS, that on the first day around 13 delegations, which were all non-political, met him and put forth their views.
It may be mentioned that Hurriyat Conference, considered a key stakeholder, has refused to be part of the dialogue process citing it a “futile exercise”.
Main Opposition National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah has termed Sharma’s appointment as waste of time.
Sharma was accorded ‘Z’ category armed security cover which means he would be secured by commandos of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) whenever he travels to any part of the country. The CRPF has a special unit that provides armed VIP security to about 70 dignitaries at present.
Sharma, an old Kashmir hand in the country’s internal intelligence agency, enjoys the rank and status of a cabinet secretary. Union Home minister Rajnath Singh had said that Sharma would decide whom to engage with for a resolution of the Kashmir issue.