Author: Prof Balraj Madhok
Publication: The Free Press Journal
Date: May 30, 2003
After seeing my first article on
Kashmir appear in Free Press Journal issue dated May 13, 2003 I would like
to invite the attention of the people of India to the background realities
of the Kashmir issue in my observation, not only does the world, inclusive
of our own statesmen not comprehend the issue of Kashmir fully but the
two generations born in the last 50 years lack the information too.
Although this issue has lingered
on for now more than fifty years, the sorry part of the entire episode
lies in the ignorance of even the most well read Indian people. Has Pakistan
any case at all is the question? The failure of earlier Indian governments
to put across their legitimate case is on account of the mess created by
both Nehru and Abdullah.
While Abdullah was forever engaged
in carving out a path for himself in becoming the sovereign head of an
independent Kashmir, Nehru did not ever understand the inner mind of Abdullah
who finally betrayed him and India. Nehru because of his arrest done by
Maharaja Hari Singh was against him. Abdullah not only was desirous of
creating Kashmir as his personal fiefdom but was equally engaged in throwing
off the Hindu Dogra regime in Kashmir and bringing in its place a Muslim
dominated state. Pakistan has no case at all that an be heard on any International
Forum. Admittedly, it was Pakistan from whose territory not only Pakistani
Kabailis were picked up from the NWFP to invade the territory of J&K
but even the regular troops of Pakistani army were deployed in civilian
clothes to invade the territory of the state, under the charge of General
Akbar Khan of Pakistan army alias General Tariq. He was so named because
in the Islamic history a military general by this name had succeeded in
carrying out an Islamic Invasion on the territory of Egypt that had different
religions settled on its soil before its fully turned into an Islamic state.
There existed an agreement between
the state of J&K and Pakistan through then Governor General Mohd Ali
Jinnah who had agreed to permit the Maharaja of J&K to take some more
time after 15th August 1947 to arrive at a final decision, to accede to
India or Pakistan. Even after having given this assurance in writing, followed
by the visit of his personal secretary to Srinagar, Pakistan dishonoured
it sown assurance even before he took the final decision to join India
and not Pakistan, by invading the territory of J&K even before the
ruler had singed the Instrument of Accession in favour of India. While
the formal accession took place on October 26th 1947 the Pakistanis had
invaded the territory of J&K on October 22nd 1947, Hence after the
formal accession had been signed, received and duly acknowledged by the
then Governor General of India Lord Mountbatten vide his acceptance dated
27th October 1947, it became the duty of the Govt of India to protect its
invaded territory and to drive away the aggressors. Earlier there was one
Ramchandra Kak, who was the Prime Minister of the state of J&K. He
kept Sheik Abdullah in jail for the concluded trial. Ramchandra Kak entertained
an idea of keeping J&K state under the Maharaja as an independent state
but the events overtook him when the Radcliff award defining borders of
division between India and Pakistan were announced. Mehr Chand Mahajan
came to replace the former PM Ramchandra Kak and on his advise that the
new PM rushed to New Delhi and concluded the formality of signing the instrument
of accession and obtaining its acceptance within 24 hours thereafter. As
Sheikh Abdullah had been released from the prison, he too was present supporting
the Accession of the State of J&K with India. Hence continuation by
Pakistan of any territory of the state of J&K became the illegal holding
of the territory of India. Pakistan thus has no case at all and how they
still continue to hold a portion of the territory of India is the only
question that needs to be understood.
In the state politics of J&K
Sheikh Abdullah was heading a local political party, THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE
replacing the Muslim Conference. However the Muslim conference was not
totally liquidated but continued to promote the interests of the Muslim
community in J&K. The National Conference was originally created with
an idea to be secular. Sheikh Mohd headed it. Abdullah and for this reason
he came closer to Pt Nehru of the Indian National Congress. It dominated
by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawahar Lal Nehru and Acharya Kriplani. Both Dr. B R
Ambedkar and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel saw through the evil plan of Abdullah
attempting to bring about finally a sovereign J&K state under his own
fiefdom. However no such legal provision or liberty was available to any
princely state when the sub-continent of India was divided into India and
Pakistan on 15th Aug, 1947 to disregard the 3rd June 1947 Mountbatten pan
of princely states coming into being as independent state. The only criterion
was to examine the contiguity of the borders of the states with India or
Pakistan.
While there was no problems in the
matters of Bahawalpur, for Pakistan and for Bikaner and Jaisalmer for India,
the Hindu ruler of Jodhpur state tried to feel the reaction of Jinnah who
was the Governor General of Pakistan. This case becomes important because
no one has even quoted this illustration in favour of India and against
the Muslim state of Pakistan because it is now a fat of history that Jinnah
offered to the Hindu ruler of Jodhpur a blank cheque to dictate any terms
of his proposal accession to Pakistan although Pakistan itself was created
on the ground of majority population of that area that constituted of Muslims.
Thus vanished the sincerity of his famous Two-Nation Theory of Hindus and
Muslims in India being two different nations? There also was no legal provision
of independence available to any ruler of the state even under the earlier
Govt of India act 1935 which held a path for the princely ruler to join
into the Federation of India as and when India became free.
It was intended to oust the Hindu
maharaja of J&K whose major population comprised of the Muslims. One
may not forget that the Jammu region of the state has majority Hindu population
and Ladakh region of the state has Buddhist population in majority. Gilgit
and Kargil areas are close to the actual border of J&K with Pakistan
with mixed population of Kashmiri natives and Punjabi speaking population
of Jehlum region in Pakistan. Due to the partition of the country, many
Hindus from Rawalpindi and Jehlum area had crossed over into J&K thinking
that they could be better protected in there which was under the control
of Hindu Maharaja Hari Singh. Another point of vital interest is that it
was once again the Jinnah who toyed with the Hindu ruler of Jodhpur state
in Rajasthan and had offered to him a blank cheque to fill on condition
that he would join Pakistan. A proposal of exchange of total hindu/muslim
population in the two countries had been mooted by Dr B R Ambedkar, Raja
Gopalachari, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Jinnah was rejected by Nehru,
on being goaded by Gandhiji.
The final Radcliff award of dividing
the sub-continent came into being late in time than what would have been
material for the Maharaja of J&K to take his final decision. India
& Pakistan were formalized as Dominion states on 15th August 1947 but
the ruler of J&K waited till he could appreciate the effect of his
state's geographical connection through a road joining Jammu & Pathankot.
In the N in the course of its debates on Kashmir, Sir Mohd Zaffarulla Khan,
the Pakistani Foreign Minister admitted that the Pakistani regular troops
were involved in helping the invasion of J&K. On accession the territory
of J&K and its borders became India, it became the duty of the Govt
of India to protect her own borders. Hence India is legally & jurisdically
justified in sending her troops and save the Srinagar Valley.
It is this background that requires
to be publicized for world knowledge. The entire matter could have been
taken to the world court at Hague which is another UN organ from whom a
judicial declaration could have been asked for if as per International
Law has not the territory of J&K become the territory of India. Any
attack on its territory must mean as an attack on India. All arguments
to the contrary must be abandoned and the hasty complaint made by Nehru
on the persuasion of Lord Mountbatten to the UN must be now withdrawn to
silence for all time to come any residual controversy in any form. Three
military wars have been fought and won by the soldiers of India in the
battlefield. What was won through the blood of India soldiers was regretfully
lost by India's statesmen like Nehru and Abdullah and later by Indira Gandhi,
who fell into the trap of Bhutto and released 93000 Pakistani Captives.
Leaving everything else aside including reference to the UN and its resolutions
on the issue of J&K it is completely proven that "Pakistan has no case
in Kashmir, but for the mess created by Nehru & Abdullah".
