Situation in Kashmir improved over past year, Hurriyat Conference now ready for talks with govt, says Governor Satya Pal Malik

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik said on Saturday that the situation in the Valley had vastly improved over the past year and the Hurriyat Conference was willing to enter into a dialogue with the government. “The Hurriyat Conference was not willing to talk. Ram Vilas Paswan was standing at their door (in 2016), but they were not ready to talk,” Malik said at a function in Srinagar. “Today, they are ready for talks and want to hold dialogue. There is a change in everyone.” [caption id=“attachment_5600381” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik. PTI[/caption] Malik said the situation in Kashmir had improved ever since he took over as the governor last August, adding that the recruitment of militants had almost stopped and stone-pelting incidents on Fridays had ended. “I feel good that the temperature (of the situation) has come down significantly since the day I arrived here,” he said. “We do not feel good when a youth is killed, we want to bring him back. There is a lot of thought being given as to what kind of scheme is needed to bring them back,” Malik said. “But when someone opens fire, the security forces will fire back. They will not present a bouquet of flowers.” The governor hinted that it was not easy to assess the situation in Kashmir while sitting elsewhere in the country even if one had served or lived in the Valley for some time. “When I visit Delhi, there are so many people who claim to be a Kashmir hand. I ask them when were you in Kashmir? They say 15 years ago,” he said. “Kashmir changes in 15 days. You don’t know anything. If you want to know Kashmir, live there and see it.” Malik said when he came to the state, he decided not to listen only to intelligence people. “I am in touch with around 200 people, and from them, I have come to know about the problems. The diseases have been diagnosed. The diseases are aplenty, but these can be cured. The narrative can be changed; the prerequisite is that the intentions are good and sincere on both sides,” he added.