NO INTELLIGENCE PROOF SO FAR ABOUT AL-QAEDA'S LINK IN J-K: OMAR ABDULLAH

Srinagar, May 9 (Only Kashmir): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday dismisses reports about any links between the Al-Qaeda terror outfit and the militants in the valley.
Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of administrative secretaries here, Abdullah ruled out the presence of Al-Qaeda in the valley region.
"A lot of people have tried to draw parallels and links between al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden and what has happened in Jammu and Kashmir. Osama bin Laden himself has from time to time talked about Kashmir, as one of his unfinished agendas," said Abdullah.
"But, in the two and a half odd years that I have had the honour of chairing the unified command as Chief Minister, I have yet to be shown any piece of intelligence that would suggest a link between Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden and what happens in Jammu and Kashmir," he added.
Further talking about the dialogue process initiated by the Centre, Abdullah said: "The dialogue between the government's interlocutors and the people of the state is on and it is needed to speed up the process and every effort should be made and that the limit of talks should be widened."
"And those who have not participated in the peace talks should also come forward and be included in talks. Because if they say that apart from dialogue and discussion there is no solution then staying out of the dialogue is also no solution," he added.
The Centre had appointed a three-member panel comprising Dileep Padgaonkar, M M Ansari and academician Radha Kumar as interlocutors in the Jammu and Kashmir dialogue process on October 13 last year to deliberate with cross section of opinion in the state, including militants, to find a lasting political settlement.