NEW DELHI, March 22: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday met the leader of his regional ally in Kashmir over the party's calls for drastic cut in troop levels in the disputed territory, officials said. Mufti Mohammed Sayeed's regional People's Democratic Party (PDP), a key partner of Kashmir's Congress-run administration, has threatened to withdraw its support if New Delhi rejected its demands for troop cuts by mid-year.

Details of Mr Singh's one-to-one meeting with Sayeed were not immediately known, although officials said the regional politician was also expected to demand the repeal of a tough law that gave sweeping powers to the army in occupied Kashmir.

“The PDP leader is also likely to press for the withdrawal of military presence from civilian property in Jammu and Kashmir,” an official from the premier's office told AFP.