India's Modi to hold first talks with Kashmir leaders since removal of autonomy

FILE PHOTO: India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, India, January 29, 2021. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo

SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold face-to-face talks with top political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday, the first such meeting since his government revoked the region's autonomy in 2019, detained thousands and imposed a lockdown.

India said carving its only Muslim majority state into two federally administered territories in August 2019 was needed to spur development in the Himalayan region, where an armed insurgency has raged for decades against New Delhi's rule.