Introduction
In 1947, when India and Pakistan became political realities, Kashmir remained an ambiguity. In Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) the majority of the Muslim population (77 percent in whole of J&K and 92 percent in Kashmir Valley) was ruled by a Hindu Dogra ruler. If geography and religion were to determine the accession, then it would have been feasible for the Maharaja (prince) to accede to Pakistan.1 Almost all of J&K’s major geographical communications and economic links were congruent with the areas of Western Punjab and North West Frontier Province that were to become part of Pakistan. However, despite the Muslim majority, the political inclination of the leadership was uncertain, ambiguous, and divided. The Jammu massacre, the Poonch rebellion,2 and the subsequent war finally forced India to refer the issue to the UN on January 1, 1948.3 In response to the Indian complaint, the UN established the Commission for India and Pakistan to play a mediating role in Kashmir. With no respite in fighting between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, the UN Security Council adopted a detailed resolution instructing the commission to proceed at once to the Indian subcontinent and establish offices and mediation at the disposal of the governments of India and Pakistan to facilitate the necessary measures by the two governments, both to help establish peace and order as well as a plebiscite, in cooperation with one another and with the commission.4 However, no resolution has been implemented and the conflict has entered intangibility. A full-blown armed conflict started in 1989, which was preceded by the two wars fought over the territory by India and Pakistan and followed by another war in 1999.5 The armed conflict in Kashmir has claimed more than 70,000 lives.6 In the last decade, it has also witnessed huge protests and killings. On August 5, 2019, India abolished Article 370, which had symbolically been a source of political autonomy for Kashmir.7 The instrument of accession signed between Maharaja and India was conditional. J&K became a special autonomous political unit within India, with only defense, communications, and external affairs to be maintained by the central government in India, while other matters would be the prerogative of the J&K government. Hence J&K had to have a separate flag, a separate constitution, and a separate prime minister and president.8 An important provision within the J&K was that only the citizens of J&K could own property in the territory. This protected the larger autonomy and prevented any demographic changes. However the provisions of Article 370 were diluted by subsequent Indian governments and the final nail in the coffin was provided by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, which completely abrogated Article 370 on August 5, 2019.9
