Jammu , June 22 : Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, heading the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, on Monday expressed concerns about delays in the issuance of passports in Jammu and Kashmir during his visit to the Union Territory.
The members of the Standing Committee visited the Passport Seva Kendra in Jammu and held talks with the officials at the Regional Passport Office and the External Affairs Ministry representative from Delhi.
Tharoor told reporters, “We had conversations with the Regional Passport Office, the MEA representative from Delhi here. We’ve also had conversations with the police and with the postal department. We are concerned about some of the delays that have been impeding passport issuance in this area, and we have been raising some very strong questions because we want to see improvements and speeding up of the passport delivery for applicants in Kashmir, Leh, Srinagar and Jammu. The MPs here have found it a very meaningful visit, and we’ve had some very strong and constructive discussions.”
BJP MP Arun Govil, a member of the Standing Committee, said, “We held discussions on the issuance of passports and also took some suggestions. Based on this, we will submit our report.”
The members of the Committee are on a visit to Jammu and Kashmir from June 22 to 25. The agenda of the meeting includes ‘Understanding India-China Relations and the way forward’ with special reference to the Indo-China border, as well as ‘Recent developments in India-Pakistan relations’ with special reference to the India-Pakistan border.
On Sunday, Tharoor met with Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha, after which his “progress towards normalcy” remarks sparked a political row.
Tharoor, who often finds himself in a Congress versus Congress situation, posted on X, “In Srinagar! Had the honour of an excellent meeting with Lieutenant-Governor @manojsinha_ at Lok Bhavan today. We discussed the situation in the state and the encouraging progress towards normalcy. When I arrived, he was chatting to the President of the Kashmiri Writers’ Association and the Women’s Organisation — a positive outreach that I welcomed. Many challenges remain, and much remains to be done, but I left the meeting feeling more positive than I have felt for a while.”
Today, Pawan Khera, in response, suggested that Tharoor discuss the situation of Jammu and Kashmir with other stakeholders as well. He said, “You should talk to everyone about the situation of Jammu and Kashmir, starting from the youths, businessmen, Kashmiri Pandits and civilians. I fully believe that Dr Shashi Tharoor will meet everyone and then change his opinion, as he is an educated person.” (ANI )
