PM to convene meeting on J&K security situation

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will convene a meeting soon to review the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

This comes in the wake of a demand by People's Democratic Party, an ally of Congress-led government in Jammu and Kashmir, for phased withdrawal of security forces from civilian areas of the state.

Besides Dr Singh, the meeting would be attended by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and his predecessor and PDP leader Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, official sources said on Monday night.

PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti was recently in Delhi holding a series of meetings with top central leaders, including the prime minister and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, seeking to press for her party's demand for reducing security forces from civilian areas of Jammu and Kashmir.