Grant greater autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir: Chidambaram

NEW DELHI: Proposing a radical solution to the situation in Kashmir, senior Congress leader and former Home Minister P Chidambaram tonight advocated restoring the "grand bargain" under which Kashmir had acceded to India by granting a large degree of autonomy, warning that otherwise the country will have to pay a "heavy price".

"I think their approach is wrong. We have ignored the grand bargain under which Kashmir acceded to India. I think we broke faith, we broke promises and as a result we have paid a heavy price," he told Karan Thapar on India Today.

He said the best solution, according to him, was that New Delhi should give an assurance to the people of Kashmir that the "grand bargain" promised during the time of Kashmir's accession "will be honoured fully".