Friday, May 13 2005 16:49 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: Film personalities Anupam Kher and Ashok Pandit today (May 13, 2005) took up with President A P J Abdul Kalam the cause of Kashmiri Pandits, seeking involvement of the displaced community in any process on the Kashmir issue.

Kher and Pandit drew Kalam's attention to the plight of more than two lakh Pandits after their migration from the valley 16 years ago and requested him to personally see their suffering by visiting the migrant camps in Jammu and Delhi.

At the 50-minute extended meeting during which the President sympathetically heard the two Kashmiri Pandit personalities, Kalam assured them to do whatever he can.

He particularly assured to address the problems faced on the health front by the refugees, Kher and Pandit told reporters.

Kher, a versatile actor, and Pandit, Director of movie 'Sheen', told the President that return of the displaced people to Kashmir in the prevailing conditions was not feasible and pointed to the ongoing violence in the valley, including yesterday's bomb blast near a school.

They sought creation of a separate homeland in the valley for the community as a viable option for their return to Kashmir. They also sought abolition of Article 370.

"Our approaching the President means the problems of the community have not been addressed so far," Kher said, adding they were hopeful after today's meeting.

While the Indo-Pak peace process was underway and several Confidence-Building Measures including launching of Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service had been taken, "Nobody is paying attention to more than two lakh Kashmiri Pandit refugees in camps," he said.