Imran Khan Government Plans Proposal To "Resolve" Kashmir Issue: Report

Islamabad: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government is preparing a proposal attempting to “resolve” the Kashmir issue, a senior minister in the Pakistani government has said, describing the draft as a “model for conflict resolution.”

Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari spoke about the plan during a TV talk show, but did not share the details of the proposal. “We will prepare the proposal within a week and circulate it among all the stakeholders,” Ms Mazari told the anchor of an Urdu language news channel 24NewsHD early this week.

She said the proposal, which is a “model for conflict resolution”, would be presented before the Pakistani Cabinet and also Mr Khan. “If the draft is approved, we will move forward on it,” said Ms Mazari, who is considered to be close to Pakistan’s army.

The army, which enjoys considerable influence over policy decisions in Pakistan, has ruled the country for much of its life since the formation of Pakistan 70 years ago. When asked about the status of the draft, the minister responded, “it is almost ready.”

In his victory speech last month, Imran Khan had expressed his willingness to improve Pakistan’s ties with India and said that his government would like the leaders of the two sides to “resolve all disputes”, including the “core issue” of Kashmir, through talks.

He had said good India-Pakistan relations will be beneficial for the entire region and suggested increasing trade ties between the two neighbours.

“I am a person who arguably knows the most people in India because of my days in cricket. We can resolve the poverty crisis in South Asia. The biggest problem is Kashmir,” he had said, suggesting that the two sides should come to the table to resolve it.

Pakistan’s former military dictator Pervez Musharraf claims he had proposed a ‘four-point formula’ on Kashmir to the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee during the 2001 Agra Summit.