New Delhi: Centre will hold discussion with
Jammu and Kashmir government on formulating a new surrender
policy for youths who are willing to return from
Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir and join the national mainstream.
Official sources said the Home Ministry will soon call a
meeting of the state officials and discuss the broad contours
of a new surrender policy whereby youths, who had gone to arms
training in PoK, and were now wishing to return to normal
life, could be allowed to return.
The Centre began contemplating about the move after state
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah raised the issue at the
Conference on Internal Security yesterday which was chaired by
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Chief Minister had said "to encourage more militants
to return to the state and manage their transition to civilian
life, a new surrender and rehabilitation policy of militants
is under active consideration of my government."
He had sought Centre's help in framing a policy for
return of these youths who went for training in militant camps
in PoK but do not want to come back with weapons.
The state government decided on formulating a new
surrender policy after several youths, who had disappeared
from the state for undergoing arms training in PoK, started
appearing in Kashmir and surrendering before the authorities.
The issue was that many of them were married to women in
Pakistan, thereby causing issues of citizenship of Pakistani
nationals.
-PTI
First Published: Tuesday, February 09, 2010, 00:45