The rift among centre's interlocutors on Kashmir appears to have widened further after one of the panelists Radha Kumar expressed her anger over the "smear campaign" indulged in by her colleague M M Ansari over her participation in an international conference said to have been organised at the behest of Pakistan's ISI.

A furious Kumar is understood to have submitted a letter to union home minister P Chidambaram protesting against the remarks made by Ansari about her attending a European parliament conference organised by the Tramboo Centre in 2006 in Brussels.

The centre is run by Abdul Majeed Tramboo, a barrister and a Kashmiri from the Valley, who is said to be under the scanner for his association with the Pakistani establishment, ISI and Ghulam Nabi Fai.

Fai, a US-based Kashmiri separatist, was arrested by the FBI recently for allegedly lobbying for Pakistan and ISI.

Kumar has refused to take any financial remuneration for functioning as centre's interlocutor of Kashmir and also not attend any further meetings with Ansari.

"I do not wish to say anything about the news report but yes, I am angry about the smear campaign being indulged into by Ansari," Kumar told PTI here.

She also hinted that it was difficult for her to attend meetings with Ansari, a former bureaucrat who retired as Chief Information Commissioner.

The home ministry clarified that Kumar has not resigned and she is still part of the team of interlocutors. They are preparing final reports after completing their visits," an official spokesperson said.
Soon after Ansari had said in Kashmir there was an air of suspicion as nobody believed the other person and asked "how can you join a conference without knowing the credibility of the individuals and the institutions".

This was in reference to Padgaonkar's statement expressing ignorance about the organisers of the conference.

Ansari acknowledged his two other colleagues were unhappy over his remarks whereby he had asked them to put their foreign visits on public domain to avoid media speculation.

Chidambaram had made light of Padgaonkar and Kumar's participating in conferences organised by Fai.

"Frankly, it has nothing to do with his role as interlocutor. He went as a journalist some years ago along with many other journalists, many other civil society members and human rights activists. Whether he should have gone or not is a separate issue. I don't think that should be linked with his role as an interlocutor because he did not attend any meeting of Fai after he was appointed as an interlocutor...I don't think it’s a fair connection," Chidambaram had said.

The interlocutors have so far made 10 visits to the state and covered 18 of the 22 districts during which they have met nearly 5,000 people which includes political leaders, trade unions, lawyers, student unions and newly-elected panchs and sarpanchs. The panel has submitted its interim report.

However, the separatists including both factions of Hurriyat have not met the interlocutors. Former Hurriyat chief and prominent Shia leader Maulana Abbas Ansari had met one of the interlocutors but in his individual capacity.