Seven Decades of Kashmir
1940-2010
Fact Sheet
The following document is
a compilation of information gathered through government documents, books,
articles, mainstream media reports and reports of independent fact-finding
teams. It aims to offer hard facts relating to the history of Kashmir.
By Campaign
Against War on People
Location
Kashmir is located in the heart
of South-Central Asia amongst the most populated countries of the world. It
shares its boundaries with Afghanistan, China, India and Pakistan.
Area
Covering 84471 square miles,
it is larger than 95 other independent countries in terms of area in the world.
Nearly 36% of its territory is held under Indian control, 44%
under Pakistani control which includes an area, which is less than 5% of the total, known as Azad
Kashmir. The rest, namely Aksai-chin and Shaksgam are under Chinese
control. Area under Indian control: Ladakh 15,597 sq. miles, Kashmir province:
6049 sq. miles, Jammu province: 9997 sq. miles.[1]
Population
The population of India-administered
Kashmir in 2001 was 10 million, with 67% Muslims and 30% Hindus [Census 2001].
Following is a region wise composition2:
J&K: Major Religion wise
Population Groups, 2001
REGION
|
Buddhist
|
Hindu
|
Muslim
|
Other
|
Kashmir Valley
|
-
|
4%
|
95%
|
-
|
Jammu
|
-
|
66%
|
30%
|
4%
|
Ladakh
|
50%
|
-
|
46%
|
3%
|
Languages
Urdu
(official) Kashmiri (mostly), regional languages like Dogri, Hindi, Dardi and Pahari.
English is also used.
[1] At present, the Kashmir Province comprises the districts of Srinagar,
Budgam, Pulwama, Anantnag, Kupwara, Baramulla. Jammu Province comprises the districts
of Jammu, Kathua, Poonch, Rajouri, Udhampur and Doda and Ladakh province has
Leh and Kargil districts. [http://www.kashmirstudygroup.net]
2[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/south_asia/03/kashmir_future/html/]
Chronology of Major Events
1846
Jammu and Kashmir Province was created under
the Treaty of Amritsar between the
East India company and Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu who buys Kashmir Valley
from the East India Company for Rs.75,00,000 and adds it to Jammu and Ladakh
already under his rule. British offers protection to the Maharaja and in return
Gulab Singh acknowledges the supremacy of the British Government. Dogra rule
begins in Kashmir.
1931 to 1934
High tax on poor peasants, lack of employment,
poverty and alienation from power led Kashmiris to revolt against the Maharaja.
The movement was brutally suppressed by the State forces. The Glancy Commission
appointed by the Maharaja publishes a report in April 1932, confirming the
grievances of the State's subjects and suggests recommendations providing for
adequate representation of Muslims in the State's services; the Maharaja
accepts these recommendations but delays implementation, leading to another agitation
in 1934; the Maharaja grants a Constitution providing a Legislative Assembly
for the people, but the Assembly turns out to be powerless.
[Prem Nath Bazaz, Struggle for Freedom in Kashmir, pp.140-160]
1932
Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah sets up the All Jammu
and Kashmir Muslim Conference to fight for Kashmiri freedom from the Maharaja's
rule, which would eventually become the National
Conference in 1939. The party constitution was amended so that anyone
“irrespective of their caste, creed or religion” can become member of National
Conference.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir:
Behind the vale, pp. 76]
1942
National
Conference supported the ‘Quit India’ movement.
1944
National Conference adopted a new
vision for Jammu and Kashmir “We the people of Jammu & Kashmir…to perfect
our union in the fullest equality and self-determination to raise ourselves and
our children forever from the abyss of oppression and poverty, degradation and
superstition, from medieval darkness and ignorance, into the sunlit valleys of
plenty, ruled by freedom, science and honest toil…Women citizens shall be
accorded equal rights with men…”
[http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/Sheikh_Speech.html]
1944
Leader of the Hindu Mahasabha, V. D.
Savarkar, came to generate support among the Kashmiri Pandits for a ‘Hindu
Rashtra’. Pandit S.N. Fotedar, President of the Yuvak Sabha very bluntly told
Savarkar that Hindu fundamentalism was as alien to the culture of Kashmir as
Muslim fundamentalism.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir: Behind the vale, pp. 86]
1946
Cabinet Mission arrived in India
to finalize the fate of the subcontinent. Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah sent a tough message to the Cabinet Mission,
saying: ‘Today the national demand of the people of Kashmir is not merely the
establishment of responsible government, but their right to absolute freedom
from autocratic rule. The immensity of wrong done to our people by the ‘Sale
Deed’ of 1846 can only be judged by looking into the actual living condition of
the people’. Hari Singh, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir did not join the
Constituent Assembly of India.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir:
Behind the vale, pp. 89]
1946
National Conference launches Quit Kashmir movement demanding
abrogation of the Treaty of Amritsar and restoration of sovereignty to the
people of Kashmir. This was a nationalist movement with strong anti-feudal
content, directed against the Maharaja, nobles and landlords. Hari Singh’s
response was a crackdown on the movement. His Prime Minister told the Hindustan
Times (27th May 1946), “ We have been preparing for it for 11
months…we shall be ruthlessly firm and make no apology about it”. In three days
twenty people died in police firing, hundreds were arrested, including Abdullah.
1947
Indian Independence Act: “All Indian princely states shall be released from
their official commitments and treaty relationships with the British Empire,
and will be free to join either dominion”.
[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1947/pdf/ukpga_19470030_en.pdf]
In theory, rulers of Princely States were
allowed to accede to either India or Pakistan, irrespective of the wishes of
their people. But as a practical matter, they were encouraged to accede to the
geographically contiguous Dominion, taking into account the wishes of their
people. In cases where a dispute arose, it was decided to settle the question
of accession by a plebiscite, a scheme proposed and accepted by India. For
instance, the fate of North
West Frontier Province was subject to the result of referendum. In 1948, India imposed and won a plebiscite
in the case of Junagadh, which had a Hindu majority ruled by a Muslim Ruler who
acceded to Pakistan.
[Collins & Lapierre, Mountbatten and Independent India, pp.36-37]
1947
On 15 August, the Indian subcontinent becomes
independent. Kashmir signs Standstill Agreement with Pakistan. The Maharaja
of Kashmir delays his decision in an effort to remain independent. The Maharaja
was in no mood to join the Indian dominion and was supported by loyal Hindu
fundamentalist leaders, who did not want to merge Kashmir with ‘secular India’.
The working committee of All Jammu and Kashmir Rajya Hindu Sabha (the earliest
incarnation of the present Bharatiya Janata Party in the state) formally
adopted a resolution reiterating its faith in the Maharaja and extended its
‘support to whatever he was doing or might do on the issue of accession’. Barring the National Conference,
other political parties including the Muslim Conference and the Chiefs of
Gilgit region, advised the Maharaja against acceding to the Indian Union.
[V.P. Menon, Story of
the integration of the Indian States
Balraj Puri, Kashmir:
Insurgency and after]
1947
In spring, internal revolt begins in the Poonch region against
oppressive taxation under the recently imposed direct rule by the Maharaja;
Poonch was a predominantly Muslim area. Maharaja’s forces fired upon
demonstration, killing innocent people. People migrated from Poonch to
Pakistan.
1947
Partition of India led to large
scale communal riots. In Kashmir, there was not a single communal incident
during the partition, despite the horror of neighbouring Punjab. Sheikh
Abdullah said ‘we shall not believe the two nation theory which has spread so
much poison. Kashmir showed the light at this juncture. When brother kills
brother in the whole of Hindustan, Kashmir raised its voice of Hindu-Muslim
unity’. [M.J. Akbar, Kashmir: Behind the vale,
Introduction]
1947
On 22 October, thousands of Pathan tribesmen
from Pakistan, recruited by the Poonch rebels, invade Kashmir along with the
Poonch rebels, allegedly incensed by the atrocities against fellow Muslims
in Poonch and Jammu. The tribesmen engage in looting and killing along the way.
The tribesmen and the Poonch rebels were unofficially supported by various
individuals and high ranking officials in Pakistan including Prime Minister
Liaquat Ali Khan and Chief Minister of North West Frontier Province. India
accuses Pakistan of violating the Standstill Agreement with Kashmir by
disrupting the supply links and of engaging in aggression by sending in the
tribesmen. Pakistan refutes the charges.
[Indian complaint to Security Council: http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/SecurityCouncil.html]
[Indian complaint to Security Council: http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/SecurityCouncil.html]
1947
Following invasion by the tribesmen from
Pakistan, the Maharaja of the State of Jammu and Kashmir signs the Instrument of Accession (IOA) on 26 October. The Indian government promises
military assistance if the IOA is signed (note that since this event, India has
sent troops unconditionally to neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka and
Bangladesh). India accepts the accession, regarding it as provisional until such time
as the will of the people can be ascertained by a plebiscite, since Kashmir was
recognized as a disputed territory. (A plebiscite is the direct vote of all members
of an electorate on an important public question being referred to them). Clause
7 of IOA says: ‘Nothing in this instrument should be deemed to commit me in
any way to acceptance of any future constitution of India…’
Plebiscite was also
part of the formal commitment which Mountbatten made on behalf of the
Government of India, in reply to Hari Singh’s nine-point acceptance of the IOA:
‘In the special circumstances
mentioned by your Highness my Government have decided to accept the accession
of Kashmir State to the Dominion of India. Consistently with their policy that
in the case of any State where the issue of accession has been the subject of
dispute, the question if accession should be decided in accordance with the
wishes of the people of the State, it is my Government's wish that as soon as
law and order have been restored in Kashmir and her soil cleared of the invader
the question of the State's accession should be settled by a reference to the
people’. [Instrument of Accession: http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/KashmirAccession.html;
Mountbatten’s letter: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/kasmount.htm]
1947
The Indian army enters the state on 27 October
to repel the invaders. On 27-28 October, Pathan tribesmen engage in looting and
killing a large number of people in Baramula, which results in the exodus of
over 10,000 residents. There are also charges of atrocities by the Indian army.
Sheikh Abdullah endorses the accession as ad-hoc which would be ultimately
decided by a plebiscite and is appointed head of the emergency
administration. Pakistan disputes that the accession is illegal given the
Maharaja acted under duress and that he has no right to sign an agreement with
India when the standstill agreement with Pakistan is still in force.
[Sheikh Abdullah, Flames of the China, p.97]
Nehru's address to Constituent Assembly of India on 25 November, 1947
‘Further we made it clear that as
soon as law and order had been restored in Kashmir and her soil cleared of the
invaders, the question of the State's accession should be settled by reference
to the people…In order to establish our bonafides we have suggested that when
the people are given the chance to decide their future this should be done
under the supervision of an impartial tribunal such as the United Nations
Organisation.’
[http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/nehru3.htm]
1947
In November 1947, India proposes
that Pakistan withdraw all its troops first, as a precondition for a plebiscite,
which Pakistan rejects on the grounds that the Kashmiris may not vote freely
given the presence of Indian army and Sheikh Abdullah's friendship with the
Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Pakistan proposes simultaneous
withdrawal of all troops followed by a plebiscite under international auspices,
which India rejects. Pakistan sends regular forces to Kashmir and the first war
over Kashmir breaks out.
[Alastair Lamb, Incomplete Partition, Roxford 1997,
pp.217-222]
1948
India takes the Kashmir problem to the United Nations (UN) Security Council.
India takes the Kashmir problem to the United Nations (UN) Security Council.
Resolution 38 (1948): Adopted by the
Security Council at its 229th meeting held on 17 January, 1948
THE SECURITY COUNCIL,
Having heard statements on the situation in Kashmir from
representatives of the Governments of India and Pakistan, recognising the
urgency of the situation, taking note of the telegram addressed on 6 January by
its President to each of the parties and of their replies thereto; and in which
they affirmed their intention to conform to the Charter of the United Nations.
1. Calls upon both the Government of India and the
Government of Pakistan to take immediately all measures within their power
(including public appeals to their people) calculated to improve the situation,
and to refrain from making any statements and from doing or causing to be done
or permitting any acts which might aggravate the situation;
2. Further requests each of those Governments to inform the
Council immediately of any material change in the situation which occurs or
appears to either of them to be about to occur while the matter is under
consideration by the Council, and consult with the Council thereon.
The Security Council voted on this Resolution on 17-1-48
with the following result:
In favour: Argentina ,
Belgium , Canada , China ,
Colombia , France , Syria ,
U.K. and U.S.A.
Against: None
Abstaining: Ukrainian S.S.R.
1949
On 1 January, a ceasefire between Indian and
Pakistani forces leaves India in control of most of the valley, as well as
Jammu and Ladakh, while Pakistan gains control of part of Kashmir including
what Pakistan calls "Azad" Kashmir and Northern territories. Pakistan
claims it is merely supporting an indigenous rebellion in "Azad"
Kashmir and Northern Territories against repression, while India terms that
territory as POK (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir).
1949
On 5 January 1949, UNCIP (United Nations
Commission for India and Pakistan) resolution states that the question of the
accession of the State of Jammu and Kashmir to India or Pakistan will be
decided through a free and impartial plebiscite. As per the 1948 and 1949 UNCIP
resolutions, both countries accept the principle, that Pakistan secures the
withdrawal of Pakistani intruders followed by withdrawal of Pakistani and
Indian forces, as a basis for the formulation of a Truce agreement whose
details are to be arrived in future, followed by a plebiscite; However, both
countries fail to arrive at a Truce agreement due to differences in
interpretation of the procedure for and extent of demilitarization, one of them
being whether the ‘Azad Kashmiri’ army is to be disbanded during the truce
stage or the plebiscite stage.
[http://www.kashmiri-cc.ca/un/index.htm]
1949
On 17 October, the Indian Constituent Assembly
adopts Article 370 of the Constitution, ensuring a special status and
internal autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir with Indian jurisdiction in Kashmir
limited to the three areas agreed in the IOA, namely, defense, foreign affairs
and communications.
Temporary provisions with respect to the State of Jammu and Kashmir
(1) Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution,—
(a) the provisions of article 238 shall not apply in relation
to the State of Jammu and Kashmir
(b) the power of Parliament to make laws for the said
State shall be limited to—
(i) those matters in the Union List and the Concurrent
List which, in consultation with the Government of the State, are declared by
the President to correspond to matters specified in the Instrument of Accession
governing the accession of the State to the Dominion of India as the matters
with respect to which the Dominion Legislature may make laws for that State;
and
(ii) such other matters in the said Lists as, with the
concurrence of the Government of the State, the President may by order specify.
[Excerpts from Article
370, http://lawmin.nic.in/coi/coiason29july08.pdf, pp. 243-244]
1949
As a result of protracted struggle against
feudalism, a land reform committee was appointed. The maximum
landholding was put at 22.75 acres, the rest went to tenants. The right of
peasants on mortgaged property was reinstated, the tenant is now protected from
ejection and his share of crop increased from half to two thirds, while the
cost of seed and agricultural implements was now split. A debt commission was
appointed to ameliorate the misery of usury. In just one decision the burden of debts was brought down by eighty
percent.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir:
Behind the vale, pp. 139]
1951
First post-independence election in Kashmir
takes place. The UN passes a resolution to the effect that such
elections do not substitute a plebiscite, because a plebiscite offers the
option of choosing between India and Pakistan. Sheikh Abdullah wins, mostly
unopposed. There are widespread charges of election rigging which continue to
plague all the subsequent elections.
[http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/kashun91.htm]
1952
A Kashmiri delegation came to Delhi for talk
with the Union Government. The consensus came to be known as the Delhi
Agreement. Its main points are,
- Commitment to article 370
- Kashmiris would be citizens of India, but the state legislature would be empowered to confer special rights
- The president of India would be the head of Kashmir
- Kashmir would be allowed its own flag but not as a rival to tricolour
- The Supreme Court would ‘ for the time being’ have only appellate jurisdiction over Jammu and Kashmir
[http://jammukashmir.nic.in/profile/cntit5.htm]
1952
Jawaharlal Nehru in the Lok Sabha
on August 7 said "...Ultimately, I say this with all deference to this
Parliament - the decision will be made in the hearts and minds of the men and
women of Kashmir; neither in this Parliament, nor in the United Nations nor by
anybody else"
[Selected works of Jawaharlal Nehru, vol. 19 pp. 295-6]
[Selected works of Jawaharlal Nehru, vol. 19 pp. 295-6]
1953
The governments of India and Pakistan agree to
appoint a Plebiscite Administrator by the end of April 1954. Abdullah
procrastinates in confirming the accession of Kashmir to India. In August 1953,
Abdullah is dismissed and arrested. Bakshi Ghulam Mohammed, who then
gets the accession formally ratified in 1954, is installed in power.
[Prem Nath Bazaz, Democracy through
Intimidation and Terror, p.15]
1956
The state Constituent Assembly adopts a constitution
for the state declaring it an integral part of the Indian Union. On 24 January 1957, UN passes
another resolution stating that such actions would not constitute a final
disposition of the State. India's Home Minister, Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant,
during his visit to Srinagar, declares that the State of Jammu and Kashmir is
an integral part of India and there can be no question of a plebiscite.
[http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/kasun126.htm]
1959
Permit system for entry to the State is abolished.
In October, the State constitution is amended to extend jurisdiction of Union
Election Commission to the State and bring its High Court at par with those in
the rest of India.
1962:
India and China go to war on account of a
border dispute in the Ladakh region. At the end of the war, China occupies
37,555 sq. kms from Indian held Kashmir at Aksai-chin and Demochok in Ladakh.
In December, 5180 sq. kms are conditionally taken over by China at Shaksgam in
Northern Areas of Kashmir under Pakistan control.
1964
Sheikh Abdullah is released in April 1964. The ailing Prime
Minister Nehru sends Abdullah to Pakistan on 25 May, in an effort to resolve
the Kashmir problem, taking into account the wishes of Kashmiris; Nehru
passes away on 27 May and the talks get stranded.
1964
Protest demonstrations occur in Kashmir valley
and against Articles 356 and 357 of the Indian Constitution being extended to
the state, by virtue of which the Centre can assume the government of the State
and exercise its legislative powers. The special status accorded to the State
under Article 370, continues to get eroded. This was followed by the
announcement that the Indian National Congress would be formally launched in
the state. Another symbol of difference, the title of Sadar-i-Riyasat for the
equivalence of the Governor went and Kashmir came on par with the rest of the
country by 1965.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir:
Behind the vale, pp. 169]
1965
Sheikh Abdullah is arrested on his return to India from Mecca
on account of his meeting with the Chinese Prime Minister Zhou En-lai at
Algiers. Angry protests occur in Kashmir Valley; the Plebiscite Front initiates
a satyagraha for Abdullah's release and many workers are arrested.
1965-1966
Pakistan undertakes Operation Gibraltar and
sends in a few thousand armed infiltrators across the cease-fire line, and
incidents of violence increase in Kashmir valley. A full Indo-Pakistani war
breaks out which ends in a ceasefire on 23 September. In January 1966, Tashkent
Declaration is signed by both countries agreeing to revert to pre-1965
position, under Russian mediation. Pakistan supported guerrilla groups in
Kashmir increase their activities after the ceasefire.
[http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/Tashkent.html]
1965
Kashmiri nationalists Amanullah Khan and
Maqbool Butt form another Plebiscite Front with an armed wing called the Jammu
and Kashmir National Liberation Front (NLF; this subsequently became the
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, or JKLF, in 1967) in Azad Kashmir, with the
objective of freeing Kashmir from Indian occupation. Butt crosses into the
Valley in June 1966 and engages in clashes with the Indian army. He is arrested
and sentenced to death in 1968 but escapes to Azad Kashmir with help from the
local people.
[Victoria Schofield, Kashmir in
Conflict, pp.114-116]
1971
Indian authorities claimed that Butt masterminded the hijacking of a
Passenger Airline to Lahore, Pakistan, and the hijackers declared affiliation
with JKLF under the leadership of Butt. The Pakistani authorities then arrested
Butt and a number of others. He was released in 1974.
1971-1972
India sends troops to East Pakistan to defend
its secessionist movement against the repressive Pakistani army. Pakistan
launches an attack from the West including Kashmir. India defeats Pakistan and
East Pakistan become independent Bangladesh. The cease-fire line in Kashmir
becomes the 'Line of Control'. India and Pakistan sign the Simla Agreement
in July, which has a clause that the final settlement of Kashmir will be
decided bilaterally in the future and that both the sides shall respect the
LOC.
[http://www.kashmir-information.com/LegalDocs/SimlaAgreement.html]
1974
In November, Kashmir Accord
is signed by G.Parthasarathy for Indira Gandhi and Mirza Afzal Beg for Sheikh
Abdullah, who is out of power at that time. The Accord retains Kashmir's
special status, but the state is termed as a 'constituent unit of the Union of
India'. Opposition parties and Pakistan condemn the Accord. Abdullah is
installed back in power.
Kashmir Accord
- Article 370 would continue
- Residuary powers would remain with the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly; Delhi would retain control of any legislation dealing with the sovereignty of India.
- Kashmir could alter or modify any future provision, but only with the consent of the President of India.
- The state could review legislation after 1953 on the concurrent list and the President’s assent ‘would be sympathetically considered’.
- Article 356 and power of the Election commission would remain as they are.
[M.J. Akbar, Kashmir:
Behind the vale, pp. 86]
Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency
in entire India under article 352 of Indian constitution, effectively bestowing
on her the power to rule by decree, suspending election and civil liberties.
Sheikh Abdullah stood by Indira Gandhi.
1976
Maqbool
Butt is arrested on his return to the Valley; Amanullah Khan moved to England
and NLF becomes Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF).
1977
Election in
Kashmir. National Conference won an overwhelming victory.
1978
The Jammu
and Kashmir Public Safety Act is passed. It provides for the detention of
any individual without trial for two years, without being produced before a
magistrate within 24 hours. To date, 50,000
people have been detained under this Act.
1982
Sheikh Abdullah passed away. His son Farooq
Abdullah, who was inducted as a cabinet Minister only a few months ago, became
the new Chief Minister.
1983
National Conference forms government after
winning an allegedly rigged election. Farooq Abdullah does not agree to
share power with Congress.
1984
Operation Blue star in Punjab. The centre
falsely accuses the Kashmir government of refusing to arrest Sikh rebels in
Jammu and Kashmir. Farooq was pressurized to leave his post; G.M. Shah replaced
him as Chief Minister. Maqbool Butt is sentenced to death.
1984
Indian and Pakistani armies engage in clashes
in Siachen Glacier, a no-man's land at an altitude of 20,000ft with extreme
weather conditions, where the cease-fire line had been left undefined by 1972
Simla Agreement; Siachen is perceived to be of strategic importance for access
to the Northern Areas and the spasmodic clashes would continue through later
years, costing thousands of lives and billions of dollars.
1986
Kashmir was
brought under Governor’s rule.
1987
National Conference – Congress alliance won
another allegedly fixed election. Credibility of National Conference is completely ravaged. The Muslim
United Front (MUF) candidate Mohammad Yousuf Shah is imprisoned and he would
later become Syed Salahuddin, chief of militant outfit Hizb-ul-Mujahedin. His
election aides (known as the HAJY group) - Abdul Hamid Shaikh, Ashfaq Majid
Wani, Javed Ahmed Mir and Mohammed Yasin Malik - would join the JKLF.
[Pankaj Mishra, The Birth of a Nation]
1988
Protests
begin in the Valley along with anti-India demonstrations, followed by police
firing and curfew.
1989
Militancy increases with bomb blasts. On 8
December, Rubaiya Sayeed, daughter of the Home Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed
is kidnapped by the JKLF. She is released safely on 13 December in exchange for
the release of five JKLF leaders.
1990
The Jammu & Kashmir Disturbed
Areas Act is passed. Under the Act,
the whole or part of the State can be declared disturbed area by the Central
Government or the Governor. The whole valley of Kashmir and two Districts of
Jammu have since been declared disturbed areas. The Act gives the police
extraordinary powers of arrest and detention. 1990 also witnessed the beginning
of extensive usage of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (1985,
amended 1987) in the J & K region.
Jagmohan is appointed as the Governor. Farooq
Abdullah resigns. Indian
security forces conducted extensive, warrant-less, and therefore illegal
house-to-house searches in Srinagar, in an effort to find illegal weapons and
root out any hidden militants. Hundreds of people were arrested, and
many Kashmiris claimed that they had been dragged out of their homes, and were
beaten and abused by the Indian soldiers.
As word of the searches spread the next morning (January 20, 1990),
thousands of Kashmiris took to the streets in protest, demanding independence.
Jagmohan responded by putting the city under curfew. That evening, a large
group of protesters shouting pro-independence slogans, reached Srinagar's
Gawakadal Bridge over the Jhelum River. There, CRPF troops responded by
surrounding the bridge and opening fire on the unarmed crowd, which included
women and children, with automatic weapons. At least hundred people were
killed. Gawakadal bridge massacre became the catalyst which propelled the
subsequent mass upsurge.
At the end
of February, an estimated 400,000 kashmiris take to the streets of Srinagar,
demanding a plebiscite.
[Victoria
Schofield, Kashmir in conflict: India, Pakistan and the unending war]
1990
Lassa Kaul, director of Srinagar Doordarshan,
is killed by the militants for pro-India media policy. Two Pandits were killed
allegedly by JKLF one year ago to revenge the death sentence of Maqbool Butt.
The JKLF tries to explain that the killings of
Pandits were not communal. The rise of new militant groups, some warnings in
anonymous posters and some unexplained killings of innocent members of the
community contribute to an atmosphere of insecurity for the Kashmiri Pandits.
Joint reconciliation efforts by members from both Muslim and Pandit communities
are actively discouraged by Jagmohan. Most of the estimated 162,500 Hindus in
the Valley, including the entire Kashmiri Pandit community, flee in
March.
1990
In May, an estimated 200,000 Kashmiris take to
the streets in a funeral procession of the martyred leader Mirwaiz Maulvi
Farooq; over 100 are killed in police firing. Jagmohan resigns and Girish
Saxena is appointed as the new Governor. The draconian Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Powers Act (AFSPA) is
applied in Jammu and Kashmir, allowing the Indian armed forces to act with
impunity in the region.
[http://www.indiatogether.org/peace/kashmir/intro.htm]
1991
Kashmiris hold anti-Pakistan demonstrations in
Srinagar following the killing of a JKLF area commander by the Hizbul
Mujahideen.
1992
Pakistan forces arrest 500 JKLF marchers led by
Amanulla Khan in POK to prevent their bid to cross the border.
1994
JKLF chief
Yasin Malik released; declares renunciation of violence.
1996
Indian armed forces storm JKLF (Amnanullah
group) Hazratbal office. Thirty three people killed.
1996
Another state assembly election is held under
the shadow of manipulation. Farooq Abdullah is sworn in as Chief Minister.
1998
India conducts nuclear tests; Pakistan also responds with
nuclear tests. On 21 February 1999, India and Pakistan sign Lahore Declaration,
agreeing to 'intensify their efforts to resolve all issues, including the issue
of Jammu and Kashmir.' Soon after his visit to Lahore, the Indian Prime
Minister Vajpayee states that 'Kashmir is an integral part of India and not a
single area of Indian soil would be given away.'
[Victoria Schofield, Kashmir in Conflict, New
York 2000, pp.207-208]
1999
Indian army patrols detect intruders from
Pakistan on Kargil ridges in Kashmir. India declares it will fight to
regain lost territory. The infiltrators are supposedly withdrawn by Pakistan in
mid-July, following the Washington Agreement with the US. War between India and
Pakistan becomes more frightening given the nuclear weaponry possessed by both
countries and Kashmir remains the underlying flashpoint.
1990-2000
Renegade militants sponsored by
the Indian security forces are used for extrajudicial executions of militants,
besides human right activists, journalists and other civilians. Lashkar-e-Toiba
(LeT) and Harkat-ul-Mujahedin dominated the militancy in Kashmir. Torture of
innocents by Indian security force continued unabatedly. Many youths
disappeared, after being picked up by Indian armed forces.
[Amnesty International, Impunity
must end in Jammu and Kashmir, 2001]
2000
Around the time of US President Clinton's visit
to India, unidentified gunmen gun down 35 Sikhs at Chittisinghpora;
India blames foreign militants; Kashmiris blame renegade militants employed by
Indian security forces; A few days later, security forces kill five persons in
an "encounter" at Panchalthan village and claim they are
"foreign militants" responsible for the Sikh massacre. No judicial
inquiry has been conducted on the Sikh massacre till date.
[Pankaj Mishra, Death in Kashmir]
2000
The State Autonomy Committee
report is discussed and an autonomy resolution is adopted in the J&K
Assembly. The SAC Report recommends restoration of Article 370 to pre-1953
status with Indian jurisdiction limited to defence, foreign affairs and
communications. The Indian Cabinet rejects the autonomy recommendation in July.
[BBC News, Anger over Kashmir
decision]
2001
India and Pakistan fail to arrive
at a joint agreement at Agra Summit. India accuses Pakistan of engaging in
cross-border terrorism. Pakistan denies the accusations. The Indian Parliament was
attacked, allegedly by Kashmiri militants, leading to immediate escalation of
tensions between India and Pakistan, and a massive build up of troops along the
border.
2002
Passage of the Prevention of
Terrorism Act (POTA). This law was used mainly in Kashmir, till it was repealed
in 2005; 99.9 % of those held under this Act were Muslims.
Abdul Ghani Lone, a leading and
popular leader of the Peoples Conference is assassinated by unidentified
gunmen.
Enforced
Disappearence
Enforced Disappearance is abduction or kidnapping, carried
out by State agents, or organized groups and individuals who act with State
support or tolerance, in which the victim "disappears". Authorities
neither accept responsibility for the dead, nor account for the whereabouts of
the victim. Legal recourse including petitions of habeas corpus, remain
ineffective.
Since 1989, when armed conflict started in Kashmir, more
than 8,000 people have disappeared after their arrest by the law enforcing
agencies. Majority of them are non-combatant Kashmiris. Even the government has
admitted the phenomenon. The then Chief Minister of J&K state, Mufti
Muhammad Sayeed on February 25, 2003 informed the State Assembly in Jammu that
"Three thousand seven hundred and forty four persons are missing in
between 2000 to 2002. 1,553 persons got disappeared in 2000. 1586 went missing
in 2001 and 605 in 2002".
[Asian Human Rights Commission - urgent appeals program; http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2003/429/]
Thousands lost in Kashmir mass
graves
Hundreds of
unidentified graves – believed to contain victims of unlawful killings,
enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses - have been found in Indian-administered
Jammu and Kashmir.
The findings appear in the report Facts under Ground, issued on 29 March by the Srinagar-based Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP). The report details the existence of multiple graves which, because of their proximity to Pakistan controlled-areas, are in areas not accessible without the specific permission of the security forces. Since 2006, the graves of at least 940 people are reported to have been discovered in 18 villages in Uri district alone.
The findings appear in the report Facts under Ground, issued on 29 March by the Srinagar-based Association of the Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP). The report details the existence of multiple graves which, because of their proximity to Pakistan controlled-areas, are in areas not accessible without the specific permission of the security forces. Since 2006, the graves of at least 940 people are reported to have been discovered in 18 villages in Uri district alone.
Unlawful
killings, enforced disappearances and torture are violations of both
international human rights law and international humanitarian law, set out in
treaties to which India is a state party. They also constitute international
crimes.
Amnesty
International has called on the Indian government to unequivocally condemn
enforced disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir and ensure that prompt, thorough,
independent and impartial investigations into all sites of mass graves in the
region are immediately carried out by forensic experts in line with the
relevant UN Model Protocol.
[Amnesty International:
http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/thousands-lost-kashmir-mass-graves
2004
Passage of the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Amendment Ordinance, which subsequently promulgated
as an Act. It provides extraordinary powers to the armed forces.
Syed Salahuddin, chief of Hizbul
Mujahideen showed his willingness to declare a ceasefire if the Indian
Government withdraws its troops from Jammu and Kashmir and begins tripartite
negotiations. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh states that India will not accept
any proposal for redrawing of the international border or further division of
the country.
2007
Prime Minister tells the PDP – partner in Jammu
Kashmir coalition government – that reduction in civilian areas of the state is
not possible immediately and that any decision on this can be taken only after
assessing the infiltration level. The Northern Command’s General Officer
Commanding-in-Chief puts the deployment of army personnel in the state to 337,000. On the strength of militants
active in the state, the army commander said that data from various agencies
have revealed the headcount at 1,140.
2008
Kashmir saw the biggest pro-freedom rallies
since 1990. It began after the Kashmir government promised to give
forest land to the trust that runs the Amarnath shrine. Life in the entire
valley was paralysed for many days.
2009
Pro-independence movement once again takes the
street, this time to protest against the murder and rape of two women by Indian
armed forces in Shopian district.
2010
The current phase of protests
started on June 11th, when a teenager was killed by a smoke shell
fired by Indian security forces. People of Kashmir came out on the streets,
en-masse, to demonstrate against this killing. Instead of punishing the
culprits who were responsible for this murder, protesters were met with live bullets, tear gas shells, batons, curfew
and scores of arrests. More than a hundred people have become martyred
in hundred days of protest.
Abuse
of Article 370 by India
- The State was put in a status inferior to that of other States. Parliament had to amend the Constitution four times, by means of the 59th, 64th, 67th and 68th Constitution Amendments, to extend the President's Rule imposed in Punjab on May 11, 1987. For the State of Jammu and Kashmir the same result was accomplished, from 1990 to 1996, by mere executive orders under Article 370.
- On July 30, 1986, the President made an order under Article 370, extending to Kashmir Article 249 of the Constitution in order to empower Parliament to legislate even on a matter in the State List on the strength of a Rajya Sabha resolution.
- The Nehru-Abdullah Agreement in July 1952 ("the Delhi Agreement") confirmed that "the residuary powers of legislation" (on matters not mentioned in the State List or the Concurrent List), which Article 248 and Entry 97 (Union List) confer on the Union, will not apply to Kashmir. The order of 1986 purported to apply to the State Article 249, which empowers Parliament to legislate even on a matter in the State List if a Rajya Sabha resolution so authorises it by a two-thirds vote. But it so amended Article 249 in its application to Kashmir as in effect to apply Article 248 instead.
[A. G. Noorani, Article
370: Law and politics, Frontline, Sep. 16 - 29, 2000]
From Jan. 1989 to August 31, 2010
|
|
Total Killings *
|
93,379
|
Custodial
Killings
|
6,974
|
Civilians
Arrested
|
118,060
|
Structures
Arsoned/Destroyed
|
105,866
|
Women Widowed
|
22,734
|
Children Orphaned
|
107,366
|
Women gang-raped
/ Molested
|
9,946
|
August 2010 |
|
Total Killings *
|
72
|
Men
|
37
|
Women
|
4
|
Children
|
31
|
Custodial
Killings
|
3
|
Tortured/Critically
Injured
|
1505
|
Civilians
Arrested
|
236
|
Structures
Arsoned/Destroyed
|
1
|
Disappeared
|
0
|
Women Widowed
|
3
|
Children Orphaned
|
9
|
Women gang-raped
/ Molested
|
20
|
* Including custody
Source:
http://www.kmsnews.org/news/50000-kashmiris-detained-under-draconian-law
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