Prof. G.M.Athar
Keeping in view the social, economic, and political circumstances prevailing in the Indian subcontinent in general and Jammu and Kashmir State in particular in1947, the Kashmiri nation has to make a choice whether Maharaja Hari Singh, Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah, Mirwaiz Mohammed Yusuf Shah or none among the three was well wisher of the people of Jammu and Kashmir State. Since the desire for acquiring political power is universal in the field of politics, so let us not consider it a negative characteristic of our political leadership. In order to safeguard the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh wanted initially to stay away from both India and Pakistan in 1947.To execute his plan into action, he submitted the Standstill Agreement to both India and Pakistan through an identical telegram on 12th August 1947. The Government of Pakistan accepted the Standstill Agreement in principle pending details on 16th August 1947. The Government of India advised Maharaja Hari Singh to send some of his cabinet minister to New Delhi to discuss the details of the Standstill Agreement. In September1947, Maharaja Hari sent his Deputy Prime Minister to New Delhi, but the Central Government advised him to transfer the power in Jammu and Kashmir princely state to the popular government before deciding about the details of the Standstill Agreement.The tribal raid in Kashmir from Northwestern Frontier Province of Pakistan on 22nd October1947 compelled Maharaja Hari Singh to request military assistance from from India but the Indian leadership put the preconditions of prior accession of Jammu and Kashmir State with Indian Union and the induction of Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah in the state government. Finally Maharaja Hari Singh submitted the Instrument of Accession of Jammu and Kashmir State with Indian Union with respect to defence, foreign affairs and communication on 26th October 1947 and three days later appointed Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah first as the Emergency Administrator and on 5th March 1948 upgraded his status as the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir State.
Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah represented the first generation of dedicated Kashmiri Muslims in the first quarter of 20th century who organized themselves under the banner of Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference in 1932 to struggle for the abolition of hereditary rule, landlordism and exploitation of poor people by the money lenders in Kashmir. In order to garner the support of both Muslims and non-Muslims of the state, Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah changed the name of his political party to Jammu and Kashmir National Conference in 1939. The National Conference released the “Naya Kashmir” Manifesto in 1944 and started “Quit Kashmir” Campaign against Maharaja Hari Singh on 20th May 1946.Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah opposed the two-nation theory of Mohammad Ali Jinnah in 1947 and supported limited accession of Jammu and Kashmir State with Indian Union to promote secularism, democracy, asymmetrical federalism and socialism in the state. On 2nd October 1947 Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah while addressing a public gathering at Hazuribagh Srinagar said,”As long as there is a single drop of blood in my body, I will oppose Jinnah’s two-nation theory”.The next day Working Body of National Conference under the Chairmanship of Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah passed the resolution, supporting accession of Jammu and Kashmir State with Indian Union. According to BilkeesTasvir Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah had gone secretly to Lahore in the first week of October 1947 to meet Jinnah on the insistence of his Lahore based friends but the Muslim League leader refused to meet him and expressed his willingness to meet only Maharaja Hari Singh or any senior official of his Government to discuss the future of Kashmir.The UN Security Council Resolutions on Jammu and Kashmir State on 21st April 1948 calling for the two-option plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir State made Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah to feel politically insecure in the Muslim majority state, having the chances to vote for accession with Muslim Pakistan. In order to remain politically relevant in Jammu and Kashmir State, Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah began to work clandestinely for an independent Jammu and Kashmir, which made New Delhi to feel apprehensive about him. In order to sustain the loyalty of National Conference led by Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru agreed in 1949 to incorporate the Article 370 in the Constitution of India to grant special status to Jammu and Kashmir State within lndian Union. On 24th July 1952 the Delhi Agreement between Nehru and Abdullah was signed to elaborate the details of Centre-State relationship.The opposition to Delhi Agreement byHindu nationalists led by Dr Shama Prasad Mukherjee angered Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah to such an extent that on 13th July 1953 while addressing a public gathering at Mujahid Manzil Srinagar, he declared parting his ways with New Delhi.The negative reporting by the Indian intelligence agencies in Jammu and Kashmir State and the Soviet political pressure on India finally led to the dismissal and immediate arrest of Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah on 9th August 1953.
The third important political leader of the Kashmiri Muslims was Mirwaiz Mohammed Yusuf Shah who was the key figure in Kashmir of the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference led by Choudhry Ghulam Abbass.On 19th July 1947, Mirwaiz Mohammed Yusuf Shah brought together the members of Muslim Conference and some of his followers on prayer at Jamia Masjid Srinagar to pass the resolution supporting the accession of Jammu and Kashmir State with Pakistan with respect to defence, foreign affairs and communication. However, once Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah was released from jail on 29th September 1947, Mirwaiz Mohammed Yusuf Shah left Kashmir for Pakistan at midnight to secure his life and political career in the Muslim homeland. Mirwaiz Mohammed Yusuf Shah became first the Education Minister in the Government of Azad Kashmir and then the President of Azad Kashmir.
At present Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front led by Mohammad Yasin Malik represents the ideology of Maharaja Hari Singh, Dr Farooq Abdullah, Mehboba Mufti represent the ideology of Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah and Syed Salahuddin and Syed Ali Shah Geelani represent the ideology of Mirwaiz Mohammad Yusuf Shah. It is upto the Kashmiri nation to either choose its leader from among the above three groups or reject them all to have some more innovative political ideology to direct the Kashmiri nation in a better direction.The Jammu and Kashmir National League stands for the Republic of Kashmiristan to convert the Kashmiri heartland and it’s adjoining Muslim majority districts and tehsils on the Indian side of Line of Control into a sovereign, secular, democratic and pluralistic Buffer State between India and Pakistan.
Prof.G.M.Athar can be reached at ghathar@yahoo.co.in
