A renewed call for India-Pakistan dialogue by Kashmir’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has once again brought into focus the Indian National Congress party’s historical engagement with separatist leaders in the Kashmir Valley. Over the past two decades, the Congress and its regional allies have been accused of adopting a soft approach towards separatist factions, including direct meetings with Hurriyat Conference leaders and controversial statements advocating dialogue with militants. In this report, we look at key instances from 2005 to 2026 that highlight this pattern.
2026: Mirwaiz’s Call for India-Pakistan Dialogue
On 30 June 2026, Kashmir’s chief cleric and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq appealed for renewed dialogue between India and Pakistan, drawing a parallel to the recent resumption of talks between the United States and Iran. Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, he emphasized that if global rivals can negotiate, India and Pakistan should be able to do the same. “Wars do not resolve disputes,” he stated, urging the leadership of the subcontinent to demonstrate proper political vision.
2025: Saifuddin Soz’s Controversial Pahalgam Statement
On 28 April 2025, senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Saifuddin Soz sparked a major controversy by suggesting that India should accept Pakistan’s denial of involvement in the Pahalgam terror attack. Speaking to the Press Trust of India, Soz stated, “If Pakistan says it had no hand in the Pahalgam terror attack, then accept this for now and trust its investigative agencies”. He insisted that dialogue with Pakistan must continue, reiterating his belief that there is no military solution to the Kashmir conflict.
2024: Separatist Leader’s Wife Appeals to Rahul Gandhi
On 7 November 2024, Mushaal Hussein Malik, wife of jailed Jammu and Kashmir separatist leader Yasin Malik, wrote to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, appealing to him to raise her husband’s case in Parliament. Asserting Yasin Malik’s innocence, she claimed he could play a role in establishing peace in Kashmir.
2017: Saifuddin Soz’s Burhan Wani Remarks
On 7 July 2017, Saifuddin Soz made another controversial statement, saying that if it was in his power, he would have kept Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani alive to hold a dialogue with him. Wani was killed by security forces on July 8, 2016, an event that triggered widespread unrest in the Valley.
2018: Soz Echoes Musharraf on Kashmiri Independence
On 22 June 2018, Saifuddin Soz triggered yet another political storm by backing former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf’s assessment on Kashmir. In his book, Soz stated that Musharraf’s 10-year-old assessment, that the people of Kashmir would prefer independence if allowed to exercise free will, appears correct even today. The Congress party again distanced itself from the remarks, labeling it a cheap gimmick to sell his book.
2017: Mani Shankar Aiyar Meets Separatist Leaders
In May 2017, a five-member delegation led by senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar visited Srinagar and met separatist leaders including Hurriyat Conference’s moderate faction president Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani. The delegation’s objective was to find ways for talks with separatist leaders to restore peace in Kashmir.
2023: Rahul Gandhi’s Yatra with Regional Allies
In January 2023, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra drew sharp criticism when it was joined by regional allies with a history of accommodating separatists. PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti joined the yatra in Awantipora, calling it “a breath of fresh air for Kashmiris”. Similarly, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah walked alongside Gandhi, despite having pledged support to the Hurriyat Conference in 2016, stating “Move ahead, we are with you” to separatist leaders during the Valley unrest.
2005-2006: Manmohan Singh’s Historic Meetings with Separatists
The most significant engagements occurred under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s UPA government. On 5 September 2005, Singh held a historic first meeting with a five-member Hurriyat Conference delegation led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at his official residence. The Prime Minister agreed to review cases of political detainees and hinted at troop reduction if violence subsided.
On 17 February 2006, Singh hosted JKLF chief Yasin Malik at his residence to discuss the Kashmir peace process. The photograph of Singh shaking hands with Malik remains a massive political controversy was proof of Congress’s soft approach toward separatist factions.
Soft On Separatists, Weak On India
This is the Congress party’s real Kashmir policy laid bare: a shameful, decades-long pattern of mollycoddling separatists, shaking hands with terrorists’ sympathisers, and treating Pakistan-backed troublemakers as legitimate stakeholders. Far from strengthening peace, this spineless approach has only emboldened anti-India forces, demoralised our soldiers, and repeatedly signalled to the world that New Delhi is open to compromise on its own territory.
Congress doesn’t see Kashmir as non-negotiable. It sees it as a bargaining chip for its outdated, dangerously naive “dialogue at all costs” fantasy. As long as this party clings to such thinking, it remains not just irrelevant to India’s security — but actively harmful to it. Enough is enough. Kashmir is India, period. No more soft-peddling, no more photo-ops with separatists.
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