History of Occupied Kashmir

The history of the occupation of Kashmir can be traced back to the 7th century AD when Hindu soldiers were stationed along with Muslim army near Kashmir valley. According to some historians, these troops established a system in which they protected Muslims from intruders who often infiltrated into Kashmir with local tribes who did not obey Islam rule and later returned to India. Since then, there have been continuous conflicts between Hindus and Muslims living within and outside Kashmir valley. It was during 1947-48 that the Sikhs came up with their own rule inside Kashmir after being defeated by Pakistan Army’s troops. After gaining independence on 5 January 1949, Pakistan has made attempts to establish its dominance over Kashmir by building wall and road inside Kashmir valley in order to stop Sikh forces from settling down here. But so far nothing has ever come out of it as Punjab had always been part of India until 1948 but today there is no such thing as Indian province in India. Today just like any other state, entire Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is administered in accordance with Indian laws and rules except for two political districts namely Srinagar and Baramulla. This situation has created many more problems because people living in both these areas are facing tough problems due to lack of proper services, communication issues, unemployment etc. Here comes the question of why do we need them? Why should all this land be kept aside for the sake of politics? Let us find out those answers.

When Pakistan occupied Kashmir, it tried establishing its supremacy even in parts of South Asia where it didn't feel confident about its ability to hold territory that's close to India. By 1947, the area around Kupar Dinaras has already gained immense importance due to increasing number of trade activities. In addition to that, large numbers of tribal groups are also settled and working alongside others in the region. Similarly the military camp which was built by Pakistani government has got significant influence among the local tribal population. During this period too, Kashmiris of different regions started feeling threatened due to the presence of Pakistan Army camp which was mostly constructed in hilly terrain. As a result a lot of tension between locals and people from the surrounding hill communities and the Pakistani military officials began to rise in Srinagar and Baramulla. A year later, in June 1949, Pakistan Government gave special permission allowing British Military Forces (who were deployed at Rawalpindi on 6th September 1948) to occupy part of Hingol Hill in the city and Gudgam district and control around 50 miles of the Khunjerab Pass. This area became known as ‘Kashmir Valley under Administration’. Now the main conflict of this time is that neither India nor Pakistan can give adequate security for the people residing in that areas. So what happens now?

After the end of the war in 1948, in 1950 the second crisis erupted on 4th January where thousands of civilians were killed in retaliatory attacks by Pakistani Army. Two years later on 10th April 1951, another wave of violence erupted in Poonch District on 26th October when 12 persons were executed by police personnel, and seven civilians were killed. These situations caused outrage among the public and triggered widespread protests in order to protect the rights of civilians. Finally, on 27th November 1952, the High Court granted interim protection to six villages located in the heart of Poonch town against violations by Pakistani and Sikh militiamen and other civilian members who entered their houses to conduct search as well as detain suspects. The court stated that citizens could surrender to the Police only if a fair trial was held in court. Thus, in 1953 the first case against anyone connected with illegal immigration in North Kashmir was filed by the administration and police authorities. Also, in 1956 the High Court refused the appeal of the Secretary General of Independent Indian Congress Party in which he had challenged a decision taken by his party president Jawahar Lal Nehru to grant relief to civilians forced to leave their homes during the Burhanpur riots. Then on 13th December 1957, another wave of unrest rocked Jammu and Kashmir once again. On this day in 1958, the ruling coalition comprising Chief Minister Manna Singh and Lieutenant Governor Satish Chandra Bora was formed in Udh and Sir and Mrs Gandhi left for Delhi. Later on 17th December in Jammu, hundreds of protesters tried to force entry through Srinagar border. They used tear gas and lathicharge to prevent them from entering. Similar incidents repeated in Bandipur and Uri. Soon enough Pakistan’s President Yahya Khan declared martial law in Jammu and Kashmir to curb protest actions.

In 1960 July 31, Dr Saroj Kumar Sharma appointed himself as Governor General of Pakistan. He ordered various arrests of suspected leaders, activists and rioters and suspended civil servants. Due to serious lawlessness in the province, Pakistan Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee had been warned that action would be taken against anyone involved in anti-state protests. On March 2nd, 1962, India announced it would join hands with Pakistan in formulating separate policies for running the dominion of the country. Further, India decided to recognize Pakistan as a non-state nation to take over the sovereignty in Kashmir. The three years long Operation Anoop began in the year 1965 wherein Indian armed forces started fighting Mufti Muhammad Sayeed. As a result Indian-Pakistan War took place which eventually ended on 29th March 1972. Since then both Pakistan and India continue to work together in maintaining peace in the region. However tensions still remain. Recently Indian Parliament unanimously voted unanimously to pass the bill to restore Article 370 that separates Jammu & Kashmir into two union territories. To sum up our discussion, one can say that there are many major reasons for why Indian occupation of Kashmir is needed. One reason is that if India doesn't deal with any of its internal problem properly, it will create big trouble for both India and Pakistan in the future. In that way it will become difficult for them to survive both economically and politically for an extended period. Secondly, we all know how bad the relations between states have been for decades. And it becomes worse when you have territorial disputes and military conflicts erupt in each other’s borders. We cannot do it without help from our friends and countries.