Pak denies visa to Mehbooba Mufti
From Inayat Jehangir

SRINAGAR, Dec 20: Pakistan has denied visa to opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti to visit the country as she was to attend a conference on Kashmir issue there.

According to sources, the PDP president had applied for visa to visit Pakistan as she was invited to attend two conferences including one organized by Pugwash on Kashmir issue.

The sources said the Pakistan High Commission, while rejecting the visa application, had cited security concerns as the reason.

The PDP president had visited Pakistan twice before and attended a Pugwash conference last year in March. She had also met Pakistan Muslim League (N) leader Mian Nawaz Sharief and now-Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari during her visit. Her visit had led to criticism from opposition at Centre, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as the PDP president had reiterated her party's stand on joint management of resources there.

Mehbooba confirmed that her name had not been cleared to visit Pakistan due to the situation obtaining in the neighbouring country.

"I was invited to attend the Pugwash Conference but that got postponed due to the abnormal situation in the neighbouring country. I was also scheduled to attend another conference there but the visa was not cleared due to the worsened situation," she told EXCELSIOR.

The PDP president said it was no big deal that she will not be visiting Pakistan. "I have already visited Pakistan twice … If they (Pakistan High Commission) feels that the situation is not conducive, it is alright," she added.

Former Vice Chancellor of Jammu University Prof Amitabh Mattoo was the other prominent person from Jammu and Kashmir invited to attend the conferences in Pakistan. When contacted, Mattoo's family said the Professor left for Islamabad yesterday.

Mattoo will be delivering his ideas at the conference on the topics of 'Conflict in South Asia' and 'Resolving Kashmir Issue'.

The two conferences were organized by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), a Pakistan-based organization.

The Sustainable Development Policy Institute provides the global sustainable development community with representation from Pakistan as well as South Asia as a whole. The Institute's mission is 'to catalyse the transition towards sustainable development, defined as the enhancement of peace, social justice and well-being, within and across generations.'

Pugwash has been organizing series of conferences about Kashmir issue and peace in South Asia in India, Pakistan and Nepal over the past several years.

The purpose of the Pugwash Conferences is to bring together, from around the world, influential scholars and public figures concerned with reducing the danger of armed conflict and seeking cooperative solutions for global problems.

Meeting in private as individuals, rather than as representatives of Governments or institutions, Pugwash participants exchange views and explore alternative approaches to arms control and tension reduction with a combination of candor, continuity, and flexibility seldom attained in official East-West and North-South discussions and negotiations.