Monitor News Desk
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi for a security review meeting.
The interaction came less than 24 hours after LG Sinha’s meeting with Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla, reported India Today.
Senior officials part of the meeting on Sunday included outgoing J&K chief secretary BVR Subrahmanyam, his successor Arun Mehta, Intelligence Bureau (IB) chief Arvind Kumar, J&K Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh and ADG, J&K Police CID.
While the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is yet to issue a statement in this regard, as per India Today report, security arrangements for the upcoming Amarnath Yatra was one of the key agendas of these meetings. The central government is yet to decide whether the Yatra will be carried out as per schedule.
The annual pilgrimage to the 3888-metre-high Amarnath cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas was cancelled last year due to the Covid19 pandemic.
Due to a surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths across the country including J&K, the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), which manages the affairs of the pilgrimage, suspended the registration of pilgrims on April 22 which had started on April 1 this year.
Speculation is also rife that the central government might be mulling restoration of J&K’s statehood.
In 2019, the Yatra was cut short by about 15 days before the central government’s August 5 decision.
