That Kashmiris are voracious meat and rice eaters is legion. So when visions of a sumptuous dinner rendezvous were thwarted by just a cup of tea, some Hurriyat Conference leaders were left deeply disappointed.

Separatist leaders from the two Hurriyat factions had come down to the capital for a dinner invitation with Pakistan Speaker Fahmida Mirza at the Pakistan embassy.

But to their utter dismay, Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz chairman Umar Farooq and his colleagues Abdul Gani Bhat and Bilal Lone were disappointed when they learnt in Delhi that their names had been struck off the guest list because Indian officials, who were also invited, were reluctant to see the visiting dignitary hobnobbing with Kashmiri separatists.

The Hurriyat leaders did meet the Pakistan speaker but it was just over a cup of tea. And the mouth-watering biryani and succulent kebabs eluded.