Daily Times

Today on 27 October 2020 Indian soldier completes 73rd year of his presence in the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Should he be there? The answer is not at all. According to the time table set by UN Plebiscite Administrator for Kashmir Admiral Chester Nimitz, the Plebiscite should have been completed by 1st November 1950. Pakistan had proposed summer and United Kingdom as October 1948 for holding the Plebiscite.

In August 1947 Government of Kashmir entered into a Stand Still Agreement with the Government of Pakistan and the lattertook over the responsibility of running the Post and Telegraph Services in the State. Pakistan was the first sovereign State to secure a foothold in running the administration of Kashmir. India was able to sneak into Kashmir, 2 months and 13 days after Pakistan had settled in. Indian soldier landed in Kashmir, under the pretence to “help the Maharaja forces to defend the territory and to protect the lives, property and honour of Kashmiri people”.

As James Barrie in his play ”The Admirable Crichton” said that “circumstances alter cases”, Kashmir stands out as a true example of this quote. Between 14 August 1947 and 26 October 1947, circumstances took an unfortunate turn. Maharaja of Kashmir pleaded that he faced a “grave emergency” in his State and asked for help from Lord Mount Batten, the Governor General of India. He offered a conditional instrument of accession and surrendered Defence, Communication and Foreign Affairs into Indian charge.

Sending of Indian Army on 27 October 1947 was provisional. The accession too was declared provisional and made subject to a reference of free vote of the people. Government of India (Jawaharlal Nehru) wrote to Prime Minister of Britain (Clement Attlee) on 26 October 1947 and to Prime Minister of Pakistan (Liaquat Ali Khan) on 28 October 1947 that “Indian army have no desire to intervene in the affairs of Kashmir State after raiders have been driven away and law and order established. In regard to accession also it has been made clear that this is subject to reference to people of State and their decision. Government of India have no desire to impose any decision and will abide by people’s wishes, but those cannot be ascertained till peace and law and order prevail. Protection of Kashmir from armed raids thus becomes first objective and in this we trust we shall have your cooperation”.

Indian army introduced a regime of surveillance and issued “Passes” to people living near the cease fire line. Army would wade into villages and homes to check upon the residents and inmates

From day one, Pakistan has contested the accession as “signing of their death warrant” and “obtained by fraud and violence” by the Government of India.Circumstances have proved that Pakistan was right in its understanding of Indian plan

The case featured at the UN Security Council for a UN supervised vote. It was recognised that the State had fractured into three administrations and the UN Security Council placed 3 more restraints on the behaviour (appearance), number and location of these Indian forces. UN SC placed the Government of Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) and Government of India under a caution in UN SC Resolution of 30 March 1951.

It has been agreed that even the final Indian soldier could be dispensed from Kashmir if the UN Plebiscite Administrator and State Government decided that their presence was no more required to support the civil administration. Pakistan and the other two administration of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan could have precipitated their removal by arguing the need for an intimidation free environment.

Unfortunate circumstances gave birth to a situation and Indian pretence worked on 27 October 1947. We still hadthe tools and rope to tether the Indian soldier. An honest examination of circumstances reveals that we walked away from the fight.India encouraged its army to colonise, repress and force out the citizens of Kashmir. Five generations of 2.5 million Kashmiris are living in the four provinces of Pakistan.

Indian army introduced a regime of surveillance and issued “Passes” to people living near the cease fire line. Army would wade into villages and homes to check upon the residents and inmates. The “Pass” a kind of ID card had to be kept ready for a show and renewed on aregular basis to control the movement of citizens. The State administration did not object to this control and treatment of Kashmiris by the Indian army. It wasnot reported by the Kashmiri leadership. Army would interrogate and torturethe locals arrested under the charge of having been to their relations on the other side of the cease fire line or in worse cases for espionage.

We (JKCHR) raised the issue of “Pass Laws” at the UN World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna in June 1993. Members of the Indiandelegation sitting in the audience, were surprised and unwilling to accept that the Indian army had been enforcing a regime of “Pass Laws” in parts of Kashmir. Today we have 900000 Indian soldiers and they have been acting with no holds barred from 5 August 2019.

India has people of Kashmir, Government of Pakistan and the UN sitting on her tail. However, it has succeeded to wag its tail to deceive them all. Pakistan’sweakness on Kashmir started from the Indus Water Treaty. Ayub Khan in his broadcast to the nation on 4 September 1960 said “the best we could get under the circumstances, many of which, irrespective of merits and legality of the case, are against us”. “There is in this address an undertone of apology, as if to imply a sense of sacrifice which the Martial Law administration would have avoided if it could; but what exactly had been sacrificed it is difficult to say”. Page 189 Revolution in Pakistan by Herbert Feldman.

Indian soldier has been operating in violation of his 4 duties specified on 27 October 1947 and in violation of 3 restraints placed on his stay in Kashmir in the UN SC Resolution. He is a rogue soldier of a rogue State. His stay is unlawful.

The author is President of London based Jammu and Kashmir Council for Human Rights – NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations