SEQUEL to the imprudent statement of the Indian External Affairs Minister at Chatham House, London about Jammu and Kashmir, there has been recurrence of similar injudicious statements from Indian Defence Minister and Indian Army Chief. Indian Defence Minister Mr Rajnath Singh has bragged in a statement that, though Pakistan is not ready to give Azad Jammu & Kashmir (which they call POK) to India, the people of that region may like to join India for economic and developmental reasons.
This is very unfortunate and absurd on the part of Rajnath Singh that he dared to think unthinkable.
While following the stupidity of his boss, Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi swanked that he will get AJK through military action, if ordered by political leadership.
It appears that Indian civil and military leadership has lost their rational thinking or else is trying to deceive the Indian masses for the pleasure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team.
These deceptive and baseless statements from India’s civil and military leaders are made as if the people of AJK have invited them.
Furthermore, the Indian Army Chief and Defence Minister seem to have forgotten the events of February 27, 2019, when Pakistan responded with ‘Operation Swift Retort.’
Additionally, if India truly believes that the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) have accepted Indian rule, why then has India deployed over 900,000 security forces—primarily the Indian Army—in the occupied region?
The ground realities are: (a) people of IIOJK reject Indian occupation and have been constantly resisting against this illegal Indian occupation ever since 1947, (b) Indian security forces have killed over 100,000 innocent Kashmiris upon demand for their right of self-determination, (c) India has imposed special laws for undertaking oppression and repression over people of IIOJK since 1990, (d) people of IIOJK are totally caged in their own state since August 2019 and (e) Despite heavy Indian military presence in IIOJK, the people of IIOJK challenge the Indian rule, its demographic changes in their state where non-Kashmiris Hindus from various parts of India are being settled in their state.
If despite Indian occupation and oppression, the people of IIOJK have repeatedly rejected the Indian rule in their state, how Rajnath Singh and his reckless Army Chief issue such nonsense statements about AJK.
Indian civil and military leadership should know that the State of Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan have a historical relationship, which dates back to centuries.
This relationship has been rooted in their joint history for centuries.
Religion, common culture, joint races on sides, migrations and inter-marriages further strengthened this bond between the people of two sides.
Besides, geography of the Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan is yet another compelling factor, which essentially unites these areas.
Besides, the dietary requirements and linkages of the state with the outside world are other factors, uniting both.
All natural routes to various parts of Jammu and Kashmir are from Pakistan.
The only link, India exploited in 1947, through Gurdaspur (Pathankot) was an artificial link, which India manipulated through Radcliff Award, through an unjustified division of Punjab.
In line with Muslims of British India, who formed the All India Muslim League in 1906, people of Jammu and Kashmir established their first political party; All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference in 1932, sequel to killings of Kashmiris by Dogra Rulers in 1931.
After passage of the Pakistan Resolution on March 23, 1940, Kashmiris decided to become part of the new Muslim state – Pakistan.
Even before Pakistan formally became a reality, Kashmiris unanimously adopted a resolution, for the accession of the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan on July 19, 1947.
Then prominent Kashmir leaders, Khawaja Ghulam-ud-Din Wani and Abdul Rahim Wani, moved the resolution in the emergency session of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference held in Srinagar.
Since Pakistan was set to become a reality for the Muslims of South Asia on August 14, 1947, the Kashmiri people were eager to complete the legal formalities for the state’s accession to their dreamland.
Kashmiris have voluntarily opted to be part of Pakistan in the first quarter of 20th century and continue with their struggle to annex the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan.
They neither accepted Dogra Rule nor Indian rule in the IIOJK since October 1947.
If the people of IIOJK have not reconciled with Indian rule and are fighting against Indian occupation for the last four decades, how can people of AJK think of any option with India?
These Indian fake claims and vague statements are totally misleading and against the ground realities.
Pakistan is the first and last option for the people of entire Jammu and Kashmir including IIOJK.
It is worth mentioning that traditionally, Azad Jammu and Kashmir is the hub of military recruitment for soldiers and officers in the defence forces of Pakistan.
As a general survey, over 80% of the youth of AJK, still desire to become part of the defence forces of Pakistan.
Therefore, the love and devotion of Kashmiris for the State of Pakistan is unquestionable.
The Kashmiris on both sides of the Ceasefire Line (LoC) reject Indian narratives and its misleading and bogus claims about AJK.
Indian leadership is advised to give Kashmiris their right of self-determination in the light of UN resolutions through free, fair and impartial plebiscite.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad. (drmkedu@gmail.com)
