Kashmir Timeline: A Brief History of Kashmir Conflict

 

Jammu and Kashmir, generally known as Kashmir, is a territory in the North-Western part of the Indian Subcontinent bounded on the North-West by Afghanistan, by China on the North-East, on the South by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, and on the West by the Pakistan provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. It has an area of approximately 85,806 sq.mil, of which 46% is administrated by India, 38% by Pakistan and 16% by China. 

Founded by Maharaja Gulab Singh in 1846, it was a princely state under the rule of Maharaja Hari Singh in August 1947, when India and Pakistan won their independence from British. At the time of partition of subcontinent under the Indian Independence Act, Kashmir was free to become a independent state or accede with either India or Pakistan. 

Initially, the Maharaja Hari Singh chose none of the two countries and wanted Kashmir to become an independent state, but in October 1947, when Pakistani tribesman invaded the state, the Maharaja chose to join India in return of its help against the tribal invasion. As a result, India dispatched troops to Kashmir.

Consequently, a war erupted between India and Pakistan. Pakistan kept on conquering the region significantly when India approached the United Nations asking it to intervene. Subsequently, a ceasefire agreement between the two nations was signed in 1949 as a result of the mediation organized by United Nations. This agreement led to the ceasefire line between the Pakistani- and Indian-controlled sections of Kashmir and the region became divided.  

Since then, it has become the most militarized regions of the world, and has led to the three wars between India and Pakistan in the last six decades. 

Some of the Key Dates in Kashmir's History:

1846 - Treaty of Amritsar was signed between the British India Company and Gulab Singh, established the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. 

1927 - 1932: The Maharaja Hari Singh (Local Ruler) formulated the Article 35A. Under this law, a citizen of any area outside the borders of Jammu and Kashmir could not 

1. Own property in the state
2. Get a government job
3. Invest freely in Kashmir

 1947 - 1949: Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, with a line o control in between.

1949: The Karachi Agreement was executed between the Government of Pakistan and the then Government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference), through which Gilgit-Baltistan was ceded to the Government of Pakistan. This agreement was signed by

1. Mushtaq Ahmed Gurmani, Pakistan's Minister
2. Sardar Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, the President of Azad Kashmir
3. Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, Head of All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference

1950: Articel 370 was included in the constitution after five months of consultations between the Prime Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, Sheikh Abdullah, and the Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru. Under this article, in matters other than 

1. Defense
2. Communications
3. Foreign affairs

 the central government or parliament could not apply Indian law to the state without the approval of the state government. Kashmir was independent in all other affairs, to put it another way. 

1962: In Sino-Indian War, China defeats India and takes control of Aksai Chin. 

1965: With the aim of forming an independent state through the reunification of Indian Administrated and Pakistan Administrated Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) was founded by Amanullah Khan. 

2019: Indian Government took a decision to abrogate Article 370 and 35A. 

1. Now, Jammu and Kashmir's internal affairs has come under the direct control of the Federal Home Minister instead of the Chief Minister, who will run them through the Lieutenant Governor. 
2. After the abrogation of Article 35A, anyone who has been residing in Jammu and Kashmir for more than atleast 15 years will now be eligible to be a domicile of Jammu and Kashmir.

 2020: President of Pakistan, Imran Khan, officially declares Gilgit Baltistan as a fifth province of Pakistan. Not to mention, this region comprises nearly 33% of the state of Jammu and Kashmir.