Daily Times

The treaty of Lahore was signed on March 9, 1846 after the defeat of Sikhs. They agreed to hand over Kashmir to the British. Kashmir was sold to Gulab Singh for a payment of 7.5 million nanakshahi. The treaty of March 16,1846 brought into existence the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Radcliffe Commission gave s strip of Muslim majority areas contiguous to Pakistan to India where the only road link between Kashmir and India could be developed. Maharaja of Kashmir Hari Singh acceded to India contrary to the wishes of the people.

The first war between Pakistan and India was fought over Kashmir. When India came under pressure, it referred the dispute to the United Nations, and on January 1, 1949, a ceasefire was agreed upon. The UNSC Resolution recognises Pakistan and India as parties to the dispute and the people of Jammu and Kashmir to decide their future.

After the occupation of Jammu and Kashmir by Indian army, Sheikh Abdullah negotiated the future of Kashmir with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, which led to the creation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. Sheikh Abdullah, along with Nehru, was considered the architect of Article 370. Gopalaswami Ayyangar, who helped and pleaded Article 370, made the principle draft of 370. He had been the prime minister of Kashmir for six years with Maharaja Hari Singh.

Article 370 gave special status to the occupied Jammu and Kashmir, and gave India power over three areas: defence, foreign affairs and communication. Under Article 370, Indian parliament cannot increase and reduce borders of the occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Article 35A was inserted through a constitutional order of 1954; it was issued by President Rajendra Prasad under Article 370 on the advice of Nehru.

In a broadcast to the nation on November 3, 1947, Nehru said: “We have declared that the fate of Kashmir is ultimately to be decided by the people”

The occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s so-called constitution was formed in 1956, and it retained the definition of the state subject of 1927. The permanent resident law prohibits non-permanent residents from settlement in the state and acquiring property and government jobs. A writ petition was filed in the Supreme Court of India in 2014 by an NGO, We the Citizen, sponsored by RAW and BJP, challenging the validity of both Article 370 and 35A. According to the NGO, Article 35A is against the very spirit of oneness of India as it creates a class within class of Indian citizens.

According to the BJP president Amit Shah, now home minister, removing Article 35A has been in their manifesto since 1950, and it was their commitment to the people of the country. There are 20 more petitions filed in the Supreme Court of India challenging the article. A three-member bench under Chief Justice Dipak Misra is hearing petitions challenging the validity of Article 35A.

On August 5, the BJP-led government revoked the special status by abrogating Article 370. Pakistan has rejected India’s revocation of Article 370, and has vowed to exercise all possible options to counter the illegal and unilateral step. The disputed status of the Indian-occupied Kashmir has been disregarded, and all bilateral agreements, such as the Simla and Lahore accords, have been rejected. Also, all the resolutions of the UNSC have been thrown in the dustbin; those resolutions were accepted by Pakistan and India after the 1948 war.

Recently, the Modi government sent 170,000 more troops to the Indian-occupied Kashmir. It is the only place in the world with the highest ratio of security to troops; there is an estimated over 900,000security personnel. India has deployed one soldier to six Kashmiris. Kashmir is under a lockdown since August 5. According to The New York Times, the entire valley of about eight million people has been put on a virtual house arrest. Thousands of troops have been deployed on the streets; Hurriyat leaders have been put under house arrest, some are in jail. All means of communication, including phone lines and internet, have been severed.

The proclamation has exposed the Indian stooges, Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah. Mufti has now stated that their forefathers were wrong to reject the two-nation theory. The proclamation is contrary to the UN resolutions, the Simla accord, and the very basis on which Raja Hari Singh acceded to India. The proclamation is contrary to promises, letters and addresses made by Nehru.

In a telegram to prime minister of Pakistan on October 27, 1947, Nehru said: “The question of accession in any disputed territory must be decided in accordance with wishes of people and we adhere to this view.” In a broadcast to the nation on November 3, 1947, Nehru said: “We have declared that the fate of Kashmir is ultimately to be decided by the people.” In another letter addressed to the prime minister of Pakistan, Nehru said: “I have repeatedly stated that as soon as peace and order have been established, Kashmir should decide the accession by plebiscite or referendum under the international auspices such as those of the United Nations.”

Shashi Tharoor, a renowned Indian politician, remarked: “Narcissistic Modi has turned the biggest democracy of the world into a Hindutva state.” According to many Indian intellectuals, the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir requires consent of the elected government of the state. By scrapping Article 370, the Instrument of Accession stands null and void; it means that India is illegally occupying the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The situation has gone back to August 14, 1947.

Now the BJP-led government will make efforts for mass settlement of Hindus in the occupied Kashmir, allowing purchase of land and property to create a demographic imbalance. Indians have now unchecked access to land and property in Kashmir. This also gives a free hand to the BJP-led government to do as they please, as is done by Israelis in Gaza. India is applying the same strategy and tactics as being followed by Israelis in Gaza; there is speculation that Benjamin Netanyahu is the architect of BJP’s Kashmir strategy.

India is also likely to stage another false flag operation in the valley, perpetrating a Pakistani connection, and thus creating a warlike situation to divert attention from its atrocities in the occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan has rejected the hegemonic decision of India against the aspiration of the people of Kashmir. Pakistan has already taken some concrete steps in this regard.

Some options for Pakistan are that firstly, we must launch a diplomatic offensive in all important capitals of the world. We must send our envoys to brief world organisation such as ASEAN, SCO, the African Union and the European Union. We must keep highlighting the Kashmir issue and its implication for the region in particular, and the world in general. Attention must be drawn towards irresponsible unilateral and irrational behaviour of India, which is entirely against the aspirations of the people of the occupied Kashmir and the spirits of the UN Resolutions. Secondly, it must be conveyed to the US clearly that due to the prevailing situation in the Indian-occupied Kashmir and LOC, we are pulling out of the Afghan peace process.

Thirdly, Pakistan air space must be denied to Indian commercial aircrafts.

Fourthly, we must approach the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court for a trial of Indian authorities for crimes against humanity and ethnic genocide of Kashmiris.

The world must realise the seriousness of the issue as Kashmir is our jugular vein, and there can be no compromise. Americans considered the military solution to be the best for Afghanistan, but are now on the table with Taliban to negotiate a peace deal. The important thing here is that Taliban never asked for a dialogue. The just option for Kashmiris is to continue their peaceful protests and bring India to its knees to opt for a dialogue. Recently, Indian 15 Corps Commander threatened Pakistan of possible action across the LOC. Let there be no doubt that if attacked, the response of Pakistan would be greater than the one demonstrated on February 27, 2019.

The writer is a retired brigadier and currently commissioner of the Afghan Refugees Organisation, Balochistan