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Kashmir

Globalization, Governance and the State

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Kashmir Issue: Bilateral or International?

The Kashmir dispute is one of world’s oldest disputes and it still remains largely unresolved. The root of the issue probably goes back to 1947, when India was partioned to create Pakistan. On 26 October 1947, the Maharaja (the erstwhile ruler of the State) of Jammu and Kashmir ceded his state to the Indian government by signing the accession agreement. The accession was valid in terms of the Government of India Act (1935), the Indian Independence Act (1947) and International Law, and was total and irrevocable. It was also supported by the largest political party in the state, the National Conference. In the Indian Independence Act, there was no provision for any conditional accession. The Instrument of Accession executed by the Maharaja was the same as the ones executed by over 500 princely states in India.

With the Indian Independence and the Partition of India, the Princely States were given the option of either joining India or Pakistan or to remain independent. The erstwhile ruler of Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh decided to remain independent. This upset all plans of Pakistan, which thought that Kashmir, being a Muslim majority state, would join the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. In its frustration, it attacked Kashmir with a view of forcing the maharaja to accede to Pakistan. The small Kashmiri Army could not stop the well-equipped Pakistani troops from advancing deep into Kashmir. The Pakistani mercenaries soon reached the outskirts of Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir. Alarmed at this, Maharaja Hari Singh appealed to the Indian government for help. India pointed out that it cannot help since Kashmir at that time was not a part of India. Maharaja Hari Singh then signed the treaty making Kashmir a part of the Union of India. As soon as Kashmir became a part of India, India sent in its troops to force the foreigners out of its territory. The Indian Army slowly...