A five member delegation of AIP lead by Er. Rasheed met Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Sinagar today and reiterated that the best way to resolve Kashmir dispute is to hold plebiscite on both sides of LOC. Reiterating party’s stand Er. Rasheed said “Talks and threats can’t go together. If New Delhi means business it has to stop humiliating Kashmiris and their genuine leadership and understand that pro-resistance leadership has a strong mass support only for the reason that people have given them mandate to speak for their sentiments, aspirations and rights. In principle we are not against probing anything but why should only pro-resistance leaders be targeted. If probing financial resources and creating assets is the only issue that needed to be probed, Govt. must probe the huge assets created by politicians and bureaucrats who pretend to be loyal to the Indian state”. Er. Rasheed cautioned Home Minister of the disastrous consequences of efforts to create a political vacuum by bulldozing and targeting Huriyat and said that New Delhi has to respect the political leadership at all costs. Er. Rasheed reiterated that our fight is not about protecting internal autonomy including Article 35-A but respecting Article 370 and 35-A is in New Delhi’s own interests. The deputation also raised the issue of missing Lolab Youth Manzoor Ahmad Khan in Army custody, release of all political prisoners, shifting every Kashmiri prisoner lodged in jails outside state to their native districts, gross human rights violations by so called village defense committees (VDC’s) in Jammu region, allowing students to form unions in universities and colleges, sufferings of students studying outside state, return of border migrants to their homes in Karen, Karnah, Uri and other sectors, forcible disappearances, withdrawal of FIR’s in police stations against youth for alleged stone pelting, restoring respect and rights of jail return militants and families of active militants and various measures to improve governance at the gross root level. Er. Rasheed appealed Rajnath Singh to break the tradition of just making promises and expected that Narinder Modi’s speech of 15 Aug. would mean something and central Govt. would move beyond words and promises. He urged that rather involving every Tom Dick and Harry by calling them stake holders New Delhi must talk to Govt. of Pakistan, pro-resistance leadership, the militant leadership and the public representatives on both the sides of LOC, so that concrete road map is formulated for the final settlement. Er. Rasheed further said during the meeting “Kashmiris are not enemies of India but cannot be suppressed by various offensive measures and had it been possible then they would have given up long back. New Delhi should not forget that there are seats lying vacant in the state assembly reserved for that part of the LOC and there is a resolution passed by its own parliament claiming entire J&K including Gilgit Baltistan to be its integral part and not only Kashmiris but people of India want to know how can New Delhi implement its own parliament resolution. Therefore by all logics the best way to implement the parliament resolution is to hold plebiscite on both sides of LOC and rather bulldozing Kashmiris New Delhi must win their hearts so that whatsoever it claims to have done for people of J&K during past seventy years, makes the masses to support India when plebiscite is held”. The deputation urged Union Home Minister to take strong notice of few TV Channels who are keen bent to destroy the self respect of Kashmiris and by doing so are also adding fuel to the fire. The delegation also submitted a memorandum to the Home Minister urging that right to self determination is the most democratic, fair and workable solution to resolve J&K issue.