Kashmir has been a trouble spot since independence. Pakistan has been remarkably successful in painting us as the aggressor. Few of us know what the real story is. I had recently attended an exhibition organized by the Indian Army titled “Arms seized from Kashmir Militants.” The Colonel gave me a brochure that I am reproducing for your benefit.
Posers on Kashmir
1. Who launched the raiders, supported by its army, into Kashmir in October 1947?
2. If the Instrument of Accession is not valid for J&K, as claimed by Pakistan, then the legality
of Pakistan's own creation of other states, is questionable. That is, if one goes by Pakistan's own logic.
3. Who lodged a protest in the UN Security Council on the state sponsored attack on J and K.
4. Who refused to vacate the occupied territory of Kashmir and permit the J & K government to govern the entire state for subsequent plebiscite in accordance with UN Resolution?
5. Who agreed to negotiate the problem bilaterally, as per the Simla Accord?
6. Who has been practicing proxy war in J&K since 1988?
7. Who has armed militants with funds, weapons and terror tactics?
8. Who is sending foreign mercenaries into J&K & other parts of India?
9. Who is mixing religion with terrorism?
10. Who is carrying out ethnic cleansing by killing innocent civilians in Jammu, Doda, Rajouri,
Poonch and other parts of J & K?
11. And above all who has shown maximum restraint in the face of such a provocation?
Jammu & Kashmir
Pakistan has not been able to digest the fact that this state chose to be a part of India. It sent raiders soon after partition in 1947, and ever since Pakistan rulers call it the Unfinished Agenda of Partition.
And the fulfillment of this dream has been a tactical ploy on the part of Pakistan's rulers to divert attention from their country's political and economic problems.
Having learnt from successive defeats the futility of a conventional war, it decided to start a low-cost option of a proxy war. A continuing crisis in Kashmir serves as an excellent outlet for the frustrations at home, gaining the support of fundamentalists Islamic parties, and earning
the loyalties of the military and the ISI.
History of Dispute
In 1946, Shri Jinnah conferred with the leaders of the state for its merger with the proposed state of Pakistan but did not get a favorable response. On October, 20 1947 Pakistan launched its first attack on Pakistan, prompting the Maharaja to accede to India on October, 26. The Indian
Army, fought gallantly, to liberate two-third of Kashmir from the infiltrators. Subsequently a UN sponsored cease fire was accepted.
Appeal to the UN: On December 30, while the operations were still in progress, India appealed to the UN to intervene and Pakistan to withdraw its troops. Two mutually acceptable resolutions were adopted
a) Pakistan was to withdraw all its troops from the areas it had occupied in Kashmir
b) After that, India were to withdraw bulk of its security forces but maintain reqd numbers to maintain law and order in the state. Subsequently, a plebiscite was to be held.
Pakistan has not abided by the UN Resolutions and not withdrawn its troops or infiltrators but imposed full civil & military control while claiming the territory as Azad Kashmir.
Worse, to win Chinese support, it gifted 4853 sq kms of Kashmiri territory in the Shaksgam Valley to China in 1963, thus disrupting the territorial integrity of J& K state. (This was used to construct the Karakoram Highway linking China and Pakistan)
Successive Wars
OPERATION GIBRALTAR: In 1965, Pakistan launched this operation to annex the state. The plan was to infiltrate about 30,000 armed mercenaries and Special Forces, and instigate the local population to rise in revolt and form a Revolutionary Council which would seek help and recognition from Pakistan. The operation failed due to lack of support from the people.
India hit back with a counter offensive and there was a stalemate. A cease-fire came about on September, 23 and on January 10, 1966, the Tashkent Agreement was signed. It envisaged withdrawal of all armed personnel to per-hostility positions, repatriation of all prisoners of war and good neighbor relations.
The Third War
On December 3, 1971, Pakistan launched air strikes against India in the Western Sector, thus declaring war. India retaliated on a massive scale and assisted the people of East Pakistan who had been tortured and humiliated for demanding the fruits of their victories in elections. The Pakistan army indulged in massive rape and looting. All this lead to the creation of Bangladesh.
Simla Agreement
The 1971 war was followed by the Simla Agreement signed in 1972 which aimed at resolving all disputes between the two countries bilaterally and through peaceful negotiations. This agreement
formed the basis of India policy towards Pakistan. However, Pakistan has not honored its commitments and has attempted time and again to involve third parties on one hand and indulge in terrorism and sabotage in India on the other.
Proxy War
General Zia ul Haq conceived Operation Topaq in 1977 to annex Kashmir through a proxy war. Under this a three pronged strategy was launched –
a) to initiate low level insurgency and subvert police, financial institutions and communication network;
b) Follow this by exerting direct pressure along the Line of Control by large scale sabotage, infiltration of mercenaries and special forces to attack vital targets;
c) at an appropriate stage , using religion to influence some sections of the people, acquire
Kashmir.
By 1987, the Soviets had withdrawn from Afganisthan giving ISI tremendous experience in guerilla warfare and sabotage while working with the Central Intelligence Agency. The ISI also got a lot of sophisticated equipment and equipment. It was the right time to attack India with a low-intensity
and sabotage operation.
Weapons Recovery
AK47 13332
UMG/LMG 762
SNIPER RIFLES 454
ANTI PERSONAL MINES 5349
EXPLOSIVES 10314
RADIO SETS 1310
INDIAN CASUALTIES 1990 TO SEP 22 1998:
KILLED CIVILIAN; 1371, ARMY; 910.
WOUNDED 5828 2763.
MERCENARIES NEUTRALIZED SAME PERIOD:
KILLED 7485 APPREHENDED 23911 SURRENDERED 1792
FOREIGN MERCENARIES KILLED SAME PERIOD:
PAK - 328, AFGHAN 189, OTHERS 418.
Important events affecting Kashmir
Much against the wishes of Sardar Patel, Nehru appealed to the United Nations therby internationalizing the Kashmir issue. According to the Instrument of Accession, the whole of Kashmir was to be a part of India. If only India had cleared the whole of Kashmir there would have been no problem today. That could have been possible if we had not gone to the U.N. With no Kashmir problem, think of the money India would have saved in fifty years. Siachen costs Rs. 3 crs a day.
Like in Punjab the Congress party wanted to be in power in Kashmir at any costs. It first dismissed Farukh Abdullah's government. Then, in 1989, it is widely believed that the polls were rigged to get Abdullah back to power. This, many say was the turning point in J & K and lend to popular resentment against the government which was fully exploited by Pakistan.
The kidnapping in 1990, of Mufti Mohammed Sayyed's (the then home minister) daughter by militants and the surrender by the V.P. Singh government gave a tremendous psychological boost to militants.
Ask Yourself:
1. Why have successive Indian governments not negotiated terms favorable to India inspite of winning three wars.
2. Inspite of winning decisively in 1971, Indira Gandhi did not force the issue because Bhutto unable to handle the public fall-out of any compromise with India, requested Mrs. Gandhi to sign a watered down Simla agreement. Why was she so compassionate?
3. In the eleventh century, Prithviraj Chauhan gave Mahmud Ghazni another life inspite of winning the war, only to be killed later and now India is repeating the same mistake. Why it is that Indians are unable to go for the kill and capitalize on their conquests?
Also read: History of Jammu & Kashmir in the History section
