SRINAGAR: Top elected official of Indian-administered Kashmir has urged India to restart dialogue with Pakistan that was put on hold by New Delhi after last year’s Mumbai attacks.

In a speech at an Indian Independence Day function here on Saturday, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said: ‘I urge New Delhi to initiate talks with Pakistan to settle all outstanding issues.’

Speaking from behind a bullet-proof screen, he said violence in the region had ‘not solved any problems but only caused death and destruction’.

Most Kashmiris, however, staged their traditional one-day anti-India strike to coincide with the celebrations. The strike shut down shops and businesses and left the streets empty of pedestrians.

Since 1989, when Kashmiris launched a revolt against New Delhi’s rule, Aug 15 has been marked as a ‘black day’ in the Muslim-majority region.

Meanwhile, four Kashmiri militants were killed by troops in a fierce gun battle in southern Kashmir on Friday night, police said. The slain people belonged to Hizbul Mujahideen.

During the night soldiers also defused eight bombs planted by militants in the scenic Himalayan region. — AFP