Mirwaiz Umar Farooq invited to OIC meet

Srinagar: Moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has been invited by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation for the annual meeting of the group's foreign ministers and "Kashmir contact group" to be held in New York later this month.

On receiving a letter addressed to him from Director General of Cabinet, OIC, Dr Abdulaziz Alsebail, the Mirwaiz said he would attend the meeting if the government allowed him to.

"The annual coordination meeting of the OIC foreign ministers as well as the meeting of OIC Contact Group of Jammu and Kashmir will be held during the 70th session of the UN General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York from September 27 to October 1.

"I have the pleasure to invite you to attend the meeting in New York, as invitee," the letter said.

According to Hurriyat, it has an observer's status in OIC and Mirwaiz has several times raised the Kashmir issue in its summits.

However, the authorities have denied the Mirwaiz travel documents for the last three years, due to which he has not been able to participate in the OIC summit and other international fora to which he is invited, Hurriyat said.

The Mirwaiz said he would write a detailed letter to the OIC about the current political, social and religious scenario in the state if he was not allowed to participate in the meeting.