Basic Facts About Jammu

7/30/2019 Basic Facts About Jammu

1/7

Basic Facts About Jammu &

KashmirFind out what Jammu & Kashmir is - and thenask the right questions about this unfortunatestate, caught in the crossfire

What is 'Jammu &

Kashmir'?

Jammu & Kashmir is a state in India. It is a large state andwas ruled by a Maharaja (Indian King) in the past. Jammu &

Kashmir is made up of many regions but is called Jammu &Kashmir because the two most populous regions in the stateare called Jammu and Kashmir. There are other distinctregions in the state including Ladakh, Gilgit, Baltistan andSkardu. India's neighbour, Pakistan, grabbed many of theseregions about 50 years ago. Some parts of the state wereforcibly taken over by China. The largest portion of theoriginal state of Jammu & Kashmir remains as a state withinIndia.

What is Kashmir?

Kashmir is a beautiful valley in the northernmost part ofIndia. It is part of a state called Jammu & Kashmir. TheKashmir Valley is surrounded by some of the highest

mountain ranges in the world. The valley itself is green andthickly populated. The people of this Valley are highlyevolved and have therefore dominated the history andculture of the state.

Where is India?

India is in the southern part of Asia. It is the world's seventhlargest country and second only to China in terms ofpopulation. In short, it is a huge country. Like the UnitedStates of America, India is made up of a number of states.Each state has its own laws and customs but in importantnational matters, like national security and foreign affairs,each state must obey the Central government based in NewDelhi. In the USA, a governor rules each state. Similarly, in

each Indian State, the people of the state elect a ruler whois called the chief minister.

What is Pakistan?

Pakistan is a southern Asian country that neighbours India.It was originally a part of India. In 1947, when the British leftIndia, some Muslims wanted a country of their own and gotit. This new country was called Pakistan. The leaders ofPakistan felt that they should rule all areas of India wherepeople belonging to the Muslim faith were in a majority. Themajority of people in Jammu & Kashmir were Muslims, whileothers were Hindus and Buddhists. Some Muslims inJammu & Kashmir wanted to be part of Pakistan while mostothers did not want that. But the rulers of Pakistan felt that ifthey could capture Jammu & Kashmir by military force, thenthe people would have to accept their rule. That is why theyattacked the state of Jammu & Kashmir in 1947. At thattime, a Maharaja ruled Jammu & Kashmir. Pakistani troopsoverran most of the state and the Maharaja had to escapeto India. He asked India for help and merged his state withIndia. This was called the accession of the state of Jammu& Kashmir to India. Some Pakistani leaders to this day areunhappy that the whole of Jammu & Kashmir is not part ofPakistan.

What exactly happened in Jammu & Kashmir in the year 1947 was an independentcountry for all practical purposes. The Maharaja who ruledthe State had signed agreements with both Pakistan and

India to remain neutral and not be part of either country.India honoured that agreement but Pakistan did not.


2/7

1947?

Pakistani raiders and soldiers attacked the state in 1947forcing the Maharaja to flee to India. The Maharaja askedIndia to help his people who were being killed and looted bythe Pakistani raiders. He also agreed to make Jammu &;Kashmir part of India. The Indian ruler at that time wasPrime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. He accepted Jammu &;

Kashmir's accession to India and agreed to rescue hispeople from the Pakistani attackers. Indian troops wereflown into the Kashmir Valley and they managed to driveaway most of the Pakistani raiders from the state. But alarge area of the state remained under the control ofPakistani soldiers. These areas were difficult to reachbecause they were surrounded by tall mountain ranges.

Also, India wanted to stop the fighting. The fighting endedwith Pakistan retaining control of a large area of the statebut India keeping a larger part.

How did the fighting end?

The fighting ended in the beginning of 1949 because Indiadid not want the war to drag on. India felt that other

influential countries like the US and Britain would askPakistan to stop fighting and withdraw its soldiers from aState that had legally become part of India. India thereforewent to the world body called the United Nations, or UN forshort. India said that Pakistan had attacked a neutral Stateand that State had now become part of India. Therefore,Pakistan should withdraw its soldiers from the State. TheUnited Nations agreed with the Indian demand and askedPakistan to withdraw its forces from Jammu & Kashmir. Italso told India to ask the people of Jammu & Kashmirwhether they wanted to be part of India or part of Pakistan.This was because some people in the State wanted to joinPakistan while others wanted to stay with India. The Prime

Minister of India agreed to ask the people what they wantedthrough a process known as a referendum or plebiscite.Pakistan did not agree and refused to vacate the areas ofJammu & Kashmir it had forcibly grabbed. Because of this aplebiscite could not be held. Powerful countries like the USand Britain did not force Pakistan to withdraw its troops fromKashmir. They simply termed the entire State as a DisputedTerritory..

Why was Jammu & Kashmir termed

"Disputed

Territory"?

This was done essentially because both India and Pakistanclaimed the state of Jammu & Kashmir. The big powers, likethe US and Britain, did not want to take sides and mighthave felt that it would be best if the problem of the statecould be settled between India and Pakistan. India wants to

settle the problems once and for all. But Pakistan will onlyaccept a solution under which it can keep the KashmirValley to itself. India cannot allow this. Therefore, the so-called "dispute" continues to this day.

But what is the legal position on

Jammu &

Legally, Jammu & Kashmir is an integral and inseparablepart of India. The British had ruled India as one undividedcountry made up of many provinces and princely states.When they left, India was partitioned into two separatecountries. The new country, as mentioned earlier, wascalled Pakistan. The British as well as the leaders of both

India and Pakistan had agreed to one basic principle - everyinch of land must go either to India or to Pakistan. In other


3/7

Kashmir?

words, people living in India before the partition of 1947, hadonly two options: they could either join Pakistan or theycould join India. They could not remain independent.Jammu & Kashmir was actually an exception. The Maharajaof the State had wanted time to decide whether he should

join Pakistan or join India. But the rulers of Pakistan did not

want to give him the opportunity to decide and insteadattacked his state, killing hundreds of people and causingextensive damage to property. The Pakistani action forcedthe Maharaja to join India.

Was the Maharaja's decision to

merge his state with India

legal?

It was absolutely legal. According to the agreement onwhich the partition of India was based, the rulers of princelystates, like Jammu & Kashmir, had the absolute right todecide whether they wanted to join Pakistan or India. Therewas never any question of holding a referendum or aplebiscite. All the same, the then Prime Minister of India,Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru, agreed to hold a plebiscitebecause he was a democrat and wanted to find out what the

people of the state of Jammu & Kashmir wanted.

Then why was a plebiscite not held?

The plebiscite was not held because Pakistan refused tovacate the large parts of Jammu & Kashmir that had beenoccupied by its soldiers. The plebiscite was meant for all thepeople of the state of Jammu & Kashmir and not just forthose who lived in the Kashmir Valley. But the Pakistanis feltthat the parts of the state they had captured was theirs andwould not part with it. Pakistan defied the agreementreached by the world body called the United Nations andrefused to vacate its troops. The powerful countries of theworld did nothing to ensure that Pakistan honoured the UNResolutions on Jammu & Kashmir. India could not therefore

hold a plebiscite.Why could not India hold a

plebiscite in the part of Jammu &

Kashmir it

controls?

In 1947, when the Pakistanis attacked Jammu & Kashmir,the most popular leader of that state was a man namedSheikh Abdullah. He was a friend of the Indian PrimeMinister, Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru. Both men believed insecularism, which is a concept that allows people of allreligions and creeds to live together. Pakistan, on the otherhand, was created on the basis of religion. The leaders ofPakistan wanted a country where only Muslims would rule.Indian leaders, on the other hand, felt that anybody couldrule as long as the people elected that person. Sheikh

Abdullah preferred the idea of secularism. He thereforewanted Jammu & Kashmir to be part of India rather thanpart of Pakistan. At the same time, the Hindus who were amajority in the Jammu region, also did not want to joinPakistan. Nor did the Buddhists of Ladakh. Since all thesegroups wanted to be with India, there was no point inholding a referendum on the Indian side of Jammu &Kashmir. Also, in 1954, the people on the Indian side ofJammu & Kashmir elected a government of their own. Thisgovernment made it clear that their state was part of Indiaand not part of Pakistan. Officially speaking, they "ratifiedJammu & Kashmir's accession to India". This meant thathenceforth there could be no question of holding a plebiscitein the state of Jammu & Kashmir.

Why cannot a plebiscite be held A plebiscite cannot be held today for two reasons. Firstly,Pakistan continues to illegally occupy a large chunk of


4/7

today?

Jammu & Kashmir and does not allow the people here anyfreedom of choice. In most parts of the Pakistani occupiedpart of Jammu & Kashmir, the local people have nodemocratic rights. They cannot elect a government and theycannot dare to even talk against Pakistan for fear of beingkilled. For all practical purposes, the territory and the people

captured by Pakistan in 1947 have been incorporated intoPakistan. These people have always been ruled by Pakistanand have not been given the opportunity to learn whatdemocracy is all about. Unless, Pakistan agrees to givethem a chance to participate in a plebiscite, it will be of nouse. Secondly, Jammu & Kashmir became a legal, integraland inseparable part of India many many years ago. Today,no Indian government can allow some people in Jammu &Kashmir to break away from India. The Indian governmenttolerates some people in Jammu & Kashmir who talk aboutseparation from India but does not like them. In othercountries, people who want to break apart a country bycreating a separate independent country are called traitors.

They are usually punished by hanging. India is a moretolerant country.

Why is there so much trouble in

Kashmir

nowadays?

This is because a section of leaders belonging to theKashmir Valley want to break away from India. Some ofthem want to form a separate country while others want to

join Pakistan. Making such demands is against the law. TheIndian government has been forced to arrest some of theseleaders and put them in prison. Most of them have laterbeen released. Some of them, however, decided to becometerrorists and started to kill people in the Kashmir Valley andin other parts of the state. To protect the lives of people andto counter these terrorists, the Indian government posted

soldiers in the Kashmir Valley. The terrorists then startedkilling these soldiers as well. The soldiers started fightingback and for all practical purposes, the Kashmir Valleybecame a battlefield. Indian soldiers have killed manyterrorists but some remain to this day and continue tofrighten the people of Jammu & Kashmir.

How did Kashmiri terrorists dare to

take on Indian soldiers?

Kashmiris are basically a proud people. The youngergeneration also showed that they are a brave people. Whentheir elders and intellectual leaders told them about theglorious victories of Islam and how India had reneged on itspromise for a plebiscite, the Kashmiri youth felt they had totake up the gun against the Indian security forces. Thishappened because some leaders in the Kashmiri Valley,

who were unhappy about the fact that they could not rule,decided that they would force the Indian government toleave the Valley. These leaders knew they could not fightthe Indian government by themselves. So they went toPakistan. There the Pakistani leaders assured them all helpbecause the Pakistanis felt that if India was forced to giveup the Kashmir Valley, then they would grab it forthemselves. They decided to help the Kashmiri leaders whowanted to separate from India. The Pakistanis trainedKashmiri youth to fight, set off bombs and carry outassassinations. They also gave them money and weaponsof all kinds. These Kashmiri youth went back to the Valleyand started a reign of terror in 1989. They became knownfreedom fighters as first and then later as terrorists. Nowmost Kashmiri youths are disillusioned and have stopped


5/7

fighting but are still called terrorists, when actually thosefighting are mainly from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir,Pakistan and Afghanistan. These people are also lootingKashmiris and indulging in forced adulterous relations withmany Kashmiri women.

What is the situation in the KashmirValley today?

Most Kashmiris are disillusioned with all the killing andfighting. They want peace. Elections were held in Kashmirand Dr. Farooq Abdullah, the leader of Jammu & Kashmir'smain political party, the National Conference (NC), waselected Chief Minister. He is ruling the state today and hasclearly said that Jammu & Kashmir cannot and will not bepart of Pakistan. He has pledged full support to the Indiangovernment to fight against the terrorists and the traitorswho want to break away from India. There are otherKashmiri leaders, who wish to see the state return tonormalcy and the people have a better life.

Why does violence continue in

Kashmir?

When Kashmiris began to grow disillusioned with thefighting, the Pakistanis realised that an opportunity to grab

the Kashmir Valley was slipping out of their hands. Theytherefore trained people from Pakistan, Afghanistan andother places to fight in Kashmir. Most of these new fighterswere mercenaries and were paid to fight in Kashmir. Thesemercenaries were also told that the Muslim faith was indanger and that they were fighting a Jihad or Holy War.These are the people who are creating the most trouble inthe Kashmir Valley today. They are also responsible forkilling former Kashmiri terrorists who have stopped fighting.These foreign mercenaries have no love for the ordinaryKashmiri and have caused them a lot of harm, killing theirmen and raping their women. They are also responsible forthe abduction of six foreign tourists in 1995. One of the

tourists, who was an American, managed to escape whileanother, a Norwegian, was cruelly beheaded. The other fourtourists were also killed in cold blood but their bodies werenever found.

article 356 & 370

The Parliament has the power to legislate laws for rest of the states in the country but Article 370

prevents the Government of India from enforcing any law connected with Jammu and Kashmir

without the approval or concurrence of the State Government. Only defence, external affairs and

communications fall in the central list. Thus the law prohibiting misuse of religious places could not

be extended to Jammu and Kashmir and so Kashmir is the only region in India which can claim to be

legally not secular. The Uttar Pradesh Government was dismissed under Article 356 of the

constitution over non-prevention of the demolition of the so-called Babari Masjid, but Article 356

was never invoked in Kashmir in spite of well known and very old pre-Islamic temples and shrines

being openly destroyed by sections of Kashmiri Muslims.The President has no right to suspend the

Constitution in the State and only the National emergency act under Article 352 of the Constitution

can be imposed on Jammu and Kashmir to a limited extent and the financial emergency under

Article 360 cannot be enforced in Jammu and Kashmir.

http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-

article-370/
http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-article-370/http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-article-370/http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-article-370/http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-article-370/http://dikgaj.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/jammu-and-kashmir-repeal-the-outdated-and-temporary-article-370/


6/7

J&K economy loses Rs 4,500 crore in

disturbances after Afzal hanging

ByMI Jehangiron March 28, 2013

0Printemail

Tags:Jammu and Kashmir,Shutdown,Separatists,Omar Abdullah,Afzal Guru,Parliament attack,TiharJail,Afzal Guru hanging,curfew in Kashmir,Guru,strike in Kashmir,Kashmir shutdown,Kashmir Chamberof Commerce and Industry,Abdul Hamid Punjabi

Jammu and Kashmirs economy has taken a hit

from therash of strike calls given by separatistsgroups and curfew in the Valley in the aftermath of the

hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru with the industry pegging the loss at an estimated Rs

4,500 crore.

Tourism and handicrafts sectorsthe pivots of States economywere the worst hit due to disturbances in

normal life due to strike calls and curfew over a period of 26 days since the hanging of Guru on February

nine in Delhis Tihar jail.

The business community of Kashmir claims that it lost Rs 175 to Rs 200 crore in sales every day, be it dueto strike called by separatists or curfew clamped by authorities.

The business community alone bears the brunt of the shutdowns in Kashmir. Besides losing an

opportunity to earn, we are losing money due to overhead expenses, bank interest and employees wages,

President of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Abdul Hamid Punjabi said on Thursday.

Punjabi and other officials estimate that the loss to the economy so far could be to the tune of Rs 4,500

crore. On an average, a profit of Rs 10 crore is made each day on sales, they said.

The loss to the economy also had a cascading effect with a senior official in the states Finance department

saying a shutdown in Kashmir denied the Government an estimated Rs 170 crore per day in revenues from

various sources like sales taxes and other levies.
http://www.niticentral.com/2013/03/28/jk-economy-loses-rs-4500-crore-in-disturbances-after-afzal-hanging-59614.html#respondhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/03/28/jk-economy-loses-rs-4500-crore-in-disturbances-after-afzal-hanging-59614.html#respondhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/03/28/jk-economy-loses-rs-4500-crore-in-disturbances-after-afzal-hanging-59614.html#respondhttp://openiniframe%28%27subject-32465%27%29/http://openiniframe%28%27subject-32465%27%29/http://www.niticentral.com/tag/jammu-and-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/jammu-and-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/jammu-and-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/separatistshttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/separatistshttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/separatistshttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/omar-abdullahhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/omar-abdullahhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/omar-abdullahhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/parliament-attackhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/parliament-attackhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/parliament-attackhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guru-hanginghttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guru-hanginghttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guru-hanginghttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/curfew-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/curfew-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/curfew-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/strike-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/strike-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/strike-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/abdul-hamid-punjabihttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/abdul-hamid-punjabihttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/abdul-hamid-punjabihttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/02/16/curfew-lifted-from-kashmir-valley-after-a-week-47460.htmlhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/02/16/curfew-lifted-from-kashmir-valley-after-a-week-47460.htmlhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/02/16/curfew-lifted-from-kashmir-valley-after-a-week-47460.htmlhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/02/16/curfew-lifted-from-kashmir-valley-after-a-week-47460.htmlhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/abdul-hamid-punjabihttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-chamber-of-commerce-and-industryhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/kashmir-shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/strike-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/curfew-in-kashmirhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guru-hanginghttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/tihar-jailhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/parliament-attackhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/afzal-guruhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/omar-abdullahhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/separatistshttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/shutdownhttp://www.niticentral.com/tag/jammu-and-kashmirhttp://openiniframe%28%27subject-32465%27%29/http://www.niticentral.com/2013/03/28/jk-economy-loses-rs-4500-crore-in-disturbances-after-afzal-hanging-59614.html#respondhttp://www.niticentral.com/2013/03/28/jk-economy-loses-rs-4500-crore-in-disturbances-after-afzal-hanging-59614.html#respond


7/7

Since the execution of Guru on February 9, authorities imposed curfew as a precautionary measure to

maintain law and order. Out of the days lost, separatists have given strike calls for 13 days to demand

return of mortal remains of Guru to his family.

Punjabi said tourism and handicrafts sectors were the worst hit.

Hoteliers and people associated with tourism industry like houseboat owners, taxi operators and travel

agents suffer the most. More than two lakh people are directly earning livelihood from this sector alone, he

said.

AFSPA

Jammu: Accusing the Centre of adopting a "different yardstick" for Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister

Omar Abdullah on Monday questioned its "pick and choose" policy over Afzal Guru hanging and revoking

of AFSPA while decrying the arrest of suspected Hizbul militant Liyaqat Shah.

"When I talk about revoking AFSPA, you don't want to take the risk, but you hang Afzal (Guru). Why don't

you have the courage to revoke AFSPA...After hanging of Afzal Guru, you cannot bring him back, but after

removal of AFSPA, you can reimpose it", Omar said while replying to debate on demand for grants in the

Legislative Assembly.

Omar said "when we talk about AFSPA, we were told you are pushing the state to danger-- I do not

understand when we are ready for experiment in J&K--why there is always pick and choose-- when this

government shouted and screamed that by hanging Afzal Guru the situation in J&K state will deteriorate

you ignored that-- that was your right".

He said AFSPA is not imposed in Naxal violence hit areas. "There are no helicopters shot down in Kashmir,

but you have a different yardstick for J&K." On arrest of Liyaqat Shah, Omar said he was coming to the

state to surrender under the state's rehabilitation policy for ex-militants.

"If a man comes to attack a shopping mall, will he come with his wife and children? Tell me. I am hearing

for the first time that a militant came to attack holding the hand of his wife and carrying weapons in other

hand, as if going for a picnic."

Documents

Basic Facts About Jammu