The dimension of the suffering

The worst sufferers of the problem are the whole of India in general and Kashmir in particular which includes the areas occupied by Pakistan and the areas under Chinese control. It could be an eye opener to know the level of suffering of the Kashmiris simply by knowing the fact that this former princely state stands torn apart in five regions among three countries. Out of 222,236 sq km, a total of 78,115 sq km is occupied by Pakistan, which has further divided the regions under their control in two parts, one which it loves to call Azad Kashmir having an area of 5,619 sq km with its capital at Muzaffarabad, and another 72, 496 sq km area, which is known as Northern Areas with its capital at Gilgit. The area under Chinese occupation is 42, 685 sq km within Xinjiang and Tibet provinces. Only 101,437 sq km are is left with the State of Jammu and Kashmir in India with its summer capital at Srinagar, the historic capital of the state and its winter capital at Jammu.

When we assess the suffering in terms of tormented population of Kashmiris, we are compelled to painfully observe that they are helplessly separated from their own kith and kin in large numbers, over 10 million in India as per census of 2001, about two million as estimated in 1981, and many in China, the number we do not know because no information is permitted to travel form that county. We know only this much that the areas under Chinese control was largely uninhabited or scarcely habited at the time of Chinese occupation. Logically speaking, Pakistan and China weaned away the helpless Kashmiris from their historical capital Srinagar that happened to be their breast feeding mother for them. What greater injustice can be enumerated? What greater suffering can be hinted at? Can a child snatched from its mother be called free? Can Kashmiris held by any other countries, like those who are held by Pakistan, be called Azad (free) Kashmiris and the areas where they are constrained be called Azad Kashmir? Obviously not, simply because they are not free even to come to their own historical capital Srinagar. And Srinagar cannot help them in their need because the state is prevented to do so. Kashmiris forced to live in North East Pakistan and South West China are, on the one hand cut off from their historical capital which is run democratically, and on the other living in mostly undemocratic conditions loosing their natural freedom to life and liberty.

Srinagar does not have capacity to deal with the plight of the Kashmiris on its own because it has been kept on tenterhooks by terrorists and militants coming from across the border and insurgents in the state having umbilical chord in Pakistan.

It is here, the Union of India comes into the picture, because Kashmir is its integral part even when Srinagar has a separate constitution other than that of the Constitution of India. The state cannot do much without the help of the Union Government of India because it does not have sufficient number of security forces to deal with infiltrators, insurgents and terrorists. The security of the border areas are thus maintained by the Union of India along with rendering help to the state police to maintain law and order situation in the state.


Another dimension of the legacy of the problem starts from the date of accession of the princely state of Kashmir to India. Aspiration of the ruler of Kashmir Mahaja Hari Singh to remain independent had delayed the process of accession to India at the time of India's independence giving a chance to Pakistan to meddle with Kashmir affairs.

Yet another dimension of the problem is the aspiration of Pakistan to make Kashmir a part of the Islamic state as against a secular state of India. With the passage of time Islamic Fundamentalists from across the border penetrated and infiltrated in Kashmir in large numbers and started spreading violence and terror. They compelled the Hindus, mainly Kashmiri pandits to leave the Kashmir valley. In recent months Islamic Fundamentalists threatened Sikhs to accept Islam or leave the valley.

The international dimension of the problem can be imagined by the fact that India and Pakistan fought three wars on this issue apart from the Kargil conflict, which is also know as Kargil War, and which had threatened both the countries with its potential to escalate as a full fledged war, probably with usage of nuclear arsenals. The international community was alarmed with this dangerous prospect. Lately, the increased activities of terrorism in Kashmir, and involvement of Islamic terrorists outfits from Afghanistan and Pakistan in such activities have drawn international attention towards this problem.

The insurgency and terrorism in Kashmir, supported and inspired by Pakistan, has caused irreparable damage to life and property in the state. During the last two decades of strife in the state, over 14000 civilians and 4700 security personnel had to lose their lives, and properties worth billion of rupees were destroyed. Unofficial sources put the number of persons killed to be somewhere between 42,000 and 60,000.

There is one peculiar problem which is generally ignored by intelligentsia as well as the governments of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union of India while seeking solution to the Kashmir problem. This particular problem has been continuing since 1947 and affecting over 1.5 million Hindus who came from various regions of West Pakistan (now Pakistan) and from the areas of Pakistan occupied Kashmir. The people who migrated from Pakistan are yet to get citizenship of India with all the facilities that a citizen enjoys. They can of course vote for the Lok Sabha seats, but the address on their voting identity cards are not treated as a proof of their usual place of residence, and therefore they are unable to produce any residential proof when asked by any government institution. It prevents them from getting any facility given to an Indian citizen. They usually live in the areas like banks of rivers and other uninhabited public waste lands. They, therefore, cannot get government jobs, or cannot even get admission in educational institutions. Neither the government of Jammu and Kashmir gives them those facilities that are given to other citizens, nor the government of India.

The government of India says that there is a technical problem arising out of article 370 of the Constitution of India, which is included in Part XXI that deals with temporary, transitional and special provision. This article was inserted in the Constitution of India as a temporary provision with respect to the State of Jammu and Kashmir which limits the power of the Union government of India regarding that state due to the conditions specifically mentioned in the Instrument of Accession of Kashmir to India. Stating the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, the state government says that they were not migrated from Kashmir region and therefore they are not their subject and hence cannot be given citizenship of Jammu and Kashmir. These people were taken to Chandigarh to settle them there, but the effort was frustrated by the bureaucratic interference from the administration of Chandigarh which is run by the government of India itself. Then they came back to Jammu and Kashmir and are living in the stretch from Lakhanpur to Jammu. Needless to say that they are forced to live in most pathetic conditions, because neither the State of Jammu and Kashmir is ready to give them citizenship, nor any other state of the Union of India.

There are also other people, both Hindus and Sikhs, migrated from Pak occupied Kashmir during the partition. They are considered as natural citizen of Kashmir, but their problem is similar to those who did not get citizenship of India. These people are allowed to vote for the Lok Sabha constituency but not allowed to vote for the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, again on technical ground. It may be mentioned here that there are 125 seats in the assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, however, elections are not held for the areas under the control of Pakistan. Elections are held for only 86 seats. Thus, they are neither able to vote for assembly, nor they have any representation in the Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir. They are therefore unheard.

When terrorists compelled the Hindus living in Kashmir region to flee to escape violence, they were settled in either Jammu region or outside Jammu and Kashmir. Among them were Kashmiri pundits and other Hindus who had come form Pak occupied Kashmir or Pakistan. However, these people are not given facilities as it is given to Kashmiri pundits on the ground that they are not citizen of the state.

It is not that only Hindus and Sikhs are suffering from violence and strife created by militants and terrorists, but also the nationalistic Muslims. Whoever opposes the wrongdoings of insurgents and terrorists, become their target. Even right minded Muslims are being terrorized, compelled to even marry off their daughters to militants or to give all supports to them including food and shelter.

The situation makes the works of our security forces more difficult to execute and complex. It has become a difficult task to decipher who among the people giving shelter and support to the militants are actually their supporter and sympathizer and who are compelled to do so under threat of life and liberty.

Billions of rupees are being spent by the government of India to tackle the problem every year, however, the problem continues with a little prospect of solution to the problem in the near future, because all the interested parties to the problem are interested more in ad-hoc solutions to the immediate problems arising out of the immediate problem only than the real long term solution to the whole host of problems.

A brief history of the problem

Kashmir was under Hindu rule until 14th century. Some of the rulers were also Buddhist. However, it was conquered by Muslims who converted most of the population to Islam. It became part of Mughal Empire in 1586 and by the year 1751 the Afghan Durranis established their rule. It came under Sikh rule in 1820 when Maharaja Ranjit Singh annexed it with Punjab. In 1846, the region was purchased by the Dogra ruler Gulab Singh form the British under the Treaty of Amritsar. Dogra rule, under the paramountcy of the British Crown, lasted until 1947 and the Muslims and Hindus of Kashmir lived in relative harmony, since the Sufi-Islamic way of life followed by ordinary Muslims complemented the Rishi tradition of Kashmiri Pundits. This relatively peaceful co-existence was vitiated by 1947 by Hindu-Muslim strife the creation of politician who wanted the region to divide on the basis of religion.

In 1947, the state was ruled by Maharaja Hari Singh, the grandson of Ranbir Singh, who had ascended to the throne of Kashmir in 1925. British rule had come to an end and the British Indian Empire wad divided into two newly independent states namely Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. Both India and Pakistan had agreed that the rulers of the princely states in both the country would be given the right to opt for India or Pakistan, or to remain independent if the so desire.

At that time about 77 per cent of the population of Kashmir was Muslim. However, Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir opted for independence.

Pakistan had come into existence on the basis of religion and therefore it demanded all the Muslim dominated areas of India to be handed over to Pakistan. The demand also included Kashmir on the basis of its majority Muslim population. This Pakistani demand had no value at all because Kashmir was not a part of India at that time because the ruler of Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh wanted an independent status for his state.

Pakistan had presumed that the Muslim majority state Kashmir will join them, but became frustrated by the decision of Maharaja Hari Singh. Then Pakistan launched a guerilla onslaught on Kashmir with an intension to frighten its ruler to submission. However, Hari Singh appealed to Lord Mountbatten, Governor General of British India for help.

Maharaja Hari Sigh had wanted to sign standstill agreements with both India and Pakistan. He had even succeeded in actually signing a standstill agreement with Pakistan, but without any benefit. Pakistani forces invaded Kashmir, and Maharaja Hari Singh was left with no choice but to request India to help him out. India said that she could not do so until Kashmir became part of India. It was under these circumstances an instrument of accession was signed between India and Kashmir. As per the terms and conditions of accession agreement, Kashmir got a semi-autonomy status. A clause was added as suggested by Mountbatten which said that the wishes of the Kashmiri people would be taken into account.

Indian troops were then flown to Srinagar to thwart Pakistani aggression. They drove the Pakistani-sponsored irregulars from all but a small section of the state.

India then went to United Naitions and the UN Security council on January 20, 1948 passed Resolution 39, establishing a special commission to investigate the conflict.

Commission submitted its report to the Security Council, which subsequently ordered in its Resolution 47, passed on April 21, 1948, that the invading Pakistani army retreat from Jammu & Kashmir. This resolution also said that the accession of Kashmir to either India or Pakistan be determined in accordance with a plebiscite under UN supervision.

In the meantime Pakistan disputed the accession by saying that Maharaja did not actually sign the accession treaty before Indian troops entered Kashmir. Moreover it claimed that Indian government had never produced an original copy of the Instrument of Accession and thus its validity and legality is doubtful.

The fighting between the two countries was ended by a UN cease-fire in 1949. A cease-fire line was drawn and as a result Kashmir was divided between India and Pakistan. The cease-fire line became the border between the two countries. The UN mission insisted that the opinion of Kashmiris must be ascertained, while India insisted that no referendum could occur until all of the state had been cleared of irregulars.'

Indian part of the Kashmir then became the State of Jammu and Kashmir because Jammu region was also a part of erstwhile princely state of Kashmir. Meanwhile, election were held for the constituent assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, and the popular Muslim leader Sheikh Abdullah and his National Conference came to power. This elected Constituent Assembly met for the first time on October 31, 1951. It ratified the accession of the state to the Union of India on February 6, 1954 and the Presesident of India subsequently issued the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order under article 370 of the Constitution of India.

The Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir came into force on January 26, 1957 under which the assembly elections were held the same year for the first time.

Although the constituent assembly in the Jammu and Kashmir ratified in 1954 for incorporation into India, Pakistan did not agree to it and UN was not ready for disposition of any portion of the Kashmir region without a plebiscite. It resulted into the process of incorporation of Kashmir into India delayed.

In 1955, India and Pakistan agreed to keep their respective forces in Kashmir 10 km apart.

Jammu and Kashmir assembly in 1956 again voted for integration of Kashmir with India and thus Kashmir became an Indian state. The areas under Pakistani occupation, however, remained under control of Pakistan.

Pakistan protested the integration of Kashmir with India, and UN called for a plebiscite under a resolution. However, under the changed situation there was no meaning of them, and therefore, India refused to consider their stand. The situation was further complicated in 1959, when Chinese troops occupied the Aksai Chin area of the district of Ladakh.

Indo-Pak relations became more inflamed in 1963 because of a Sino-Pakistani agreement which defined the Chinese border with Pakistani occupied Kashmir. The Agreement also ceded Indian Kashmir territory to China.

A war broke out between India and Pakistan in August 1965 which stopped only after a UN cease-fire in September. In January 1966, Ayub Khan, the President of Pakistan and Lal Bahadur Shastri, the Prime Minister of India met at Tashkent to sort out the problem. They went their at the invitation of Soviet Union. They had agreed to mutually withdraw their troops to the position held before the latest outbreak.

India and Pakistan, once again in December 1971, fought a war in Kashmir. India made some gains, however, in December 1972, a new cease-fire line was drawn along the positions held by both the countries at the end of the 1971, and it was agreed to by both the countries.

The new phase of unrest started in 1987 with rigged election to the state assembly and violence. The legislature was then forced to be suspended. The state suffered the first terrorist attack in 1989. Pakistan supported and inspired insurgency and militancy started making inroads in the Jammu and Kashmir. Some militants demanded independence and some demanded union with Pakistan. Subsequently, President Rule was imposed. In 1995, there was a plan to hold state assembly elections, but burning of a Muslim shrine by Muslim militants and subsequent riot and arsons forced to abandon it.

Fighting between India and Pakistan again erupted in May 1999 which is know as Kargil war. India had to launce air strikes and then ground action against armed infiltrators from Pakistan. A cease-fire was reached in mid-July, but only after a heavy loss on both the sides.

Another twist in the Kashmir problem came in 2000 when a legislation came in the state assembly seeming to restore the state's pre-1953 autonomy. Negotiations between one of the Muslim militant groups and Union of India were proved short-lived. Terrorist attack on Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001 threatened to spark a war between India and Paikistan, but was somehow averted.
Despite such a difficult situation, elections to the state assembly were held in October 2002. The new government in the state fovoured negotiating with the separatists.

A bus service between Indian and Pakistani side of Kashmir was established in 2005 for the first time after partition. Pakistan occupied Kashmir was hard hit by an earthquake in the October 2005, following which border crossing restrictions were eased to facilitate relief work. Situation was then somewhat improved, however, it again started worsening after 2008.

The proposed solutions

Most of the proposed solution to the Kashmir problem failed mainly because they were not acceptable for all the sides involved. India and Pakistan had agreed in Shimla agreement of 1972 that it is a bilateral dispute and will be solved bilaterally.

Since the areas under Chinese control was largely uninhabited, it generally does not occur that it is part of the problem. Secondly, Pakistan had already transferred the Karakoram tract and certain areas to China in 1963. Thus Pakistan can only make agreements only about the region which is under their control. Even then the Kashmir problem will remain with China.
It is generally stated that it is a problem between India and Pakistan which is not the whole truth. In the process one sees at this problem either according as Indian point of view or as Pakistani point of view. A very few see it according as Kashmiri point of view. That is why all the proposals brought out by India and Pakistan failed.

One of the earliest proposed solutions was plebiscite in Kashmir which tried to seek a solution according as Kashmiri point of view. It failed because Pakistan was not ready to clear the areas which it had forcibly occupied. It could not work now because of the same reason with an addition that the demography of Pak occupied Kashmir has been deliberately changed. In Jammu and Kashmir also, Kashmiri Pundits were forced to leave the state and many others who had come from Pakistan or Pakistani occupied Kashmir have not been even given full status of citizens. Moreover, there cannot be any plebiscite under the shadow of Pakistan supported and inspired militants and terrorists.

One of the proposed solutions being discussed in official corridors, although it is yet to become an official proposal, was to make the Line of Control between India and Pakistan into a permanent border. This cannot be a solution because it does not fulfill the Kashmiris' dream of unification of all the areas of Kashmir and its people which are presently divided in three countries.
Some from intelligentsia propose that India and Pakistan should go for a comprehensive talk under mediation from the third party, preferable USA or UN. However, there is no scope left for mediation after Shimla Agreement.

Conclusion

We see that there is no readymade solution to the Kashmir problem, because it has increasingly become complex with many dimensions. All the dimensions should be addressed separately for the time being. There should not be any laxity in maintaining law and order situation in Jammu and Kashmir, but with greater care so that there should not be any violation of Human rights.

The solution will be achieved only by undergoing the process of a composite dialogue between India and Pakistan. Both the countries should respect the sentiments of Kashmiris, otherwise agreement, even if achieved, would prove to be short lived.

We must try to atleast maintain status quo, if we cannot do better. Kashmir must get the whole of the land which was there at the time when it was a princely state.