Thursday, March 30 2006 20:06 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: National Conference President Omar Abdullah today (Mar 30, 2006) met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and told him that suggestions from Islamabad should be taken 'seriously' for finding a lasting peace in the South Asian region.

"I told the Prime Minister that New Delhi should restrain itself from dismissing everything that came from Islamabad and have a healthy discussion on the suggestions that came from across the border," he told sources after an hour-long meeting with the Prime Minister.

The 35-year-old National Conference Chief said the fact that Pakistan quickly welcomed the Amritsar statement of the Prime Minister calling for a friendship treaty was indicative that it was also serious enough to find a lasting peace in the region.

"Opportunities are shrinking with every passing day. The patience of President Pervez Musharraf is also wearing thin every day. He is the man on whom New Delhi can safely bet as he has the power to turn the tide."

Omar conveyed the feelings of local Pakistanis to Singh saying "they have a lot of expectations from him as they considered him to be very serious in finding a lasting solution to all bilateral issues between the two countries, including Kashmir."

Omar, a Lok Sabha MP, also asked the Prime Minister to try and bring Kashmiri militant groups including Hizbul Mujahideen to the dialogue table.