In the concluding part of his response to the ragging controversy over Lord Mountbatten’s reported November 1, 1947 proposal for resolving Kashmir dispute, historian Ashiq Hussain Bhat asserts that if any person can be blamed for the creation of Kashmir dispute, it was the last British Viceroy of India.

Lady Mountbatten, Lord Mountbatten and Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru.
Lady Mountbatten, Lord Mountbatten and Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru.

By the way, why did Mountbatten go to Lahore post-haste after Indian Army had, with his own blessing, started landing in Kashmir? The answer lies in the fact that he went there, not with any intention to resolve the dispute, but to prolong it.

Governor General of Pakistan had, on receiving information that India had flown its army to Kashmir, conveyed an order on October 27, 1947 to his country’s ‘imported’ acting military chief, General Douglas Gracey (Frank Messrvy, the Commander-in-Chief was on leave in London), to launch a two pronged military attack on J&K State, one on Kashmir Valley from Rawalpindi to meet the newly arrived Indian Army and the other on Jammu from Sialkot to intercept Jammu-Pathankot (better call it Radcliffe-Mountbatten) Road.

Instead of taking orders from his Governor-General, Gracy informed the Supreme Commander, Field Marshal Claude Auchinlek in Delhi, on phone of the orders he had received. Auchinlek advised him to persuade Jinnah not to press his orders till he arrives at Lahore. Next day (October 28), Auchinlek met Jinnah at Lahore. He told him that if Pakistan Army entered Kashmir it would be an inter-dominion war between Pakistan and India in which case Englishmen would be pitched against Englishmen; he threatened him that if he pressed his orders all the English officers of Pakistan Army would withdraw from it (see pp. 226 Mission with Mountbatten by Alan Campbell-Johnson). Besides, he assured Jinnah that if he withdrew his orders he would bring Mountbatten and Nehru to Lahore to sort out the differences.

On November 1, Mountbatten was in Lahore but alone. Nehru had excused himself on grounds of suffering from belly-pain (the same sort of belly pain that Maharaja Hari Singh had felt on June 22, 1947 when Mountbatten was in Kashmir to discuss the future of Kashmir State).

On November 1, Mountbatten was in Lahore but alone. Nehru had excused himself on grounds of suffering from belly-pain (the same sort of belly pain that Maharaja Hari Singh had felt on June 22, 1947 when Mountbatten was in Kashmir to discuss the future of Kashmir State). This modus operndi helped English gentlemen manage for India precious days to fly in soldiers to Kashmir in strength. It could not have been a smooth sail for India given the fact that the 330 Sikhs fighters that Delhi flew to Kashmir on October 27 were killed by tribal’s the same day including their commander Colonel Ranjit Rai somewhere between Sangrama and Baramulla. Induction of Pakistani army could have changed the war theatre.

Mountbatten had all along through his Viceroyalty prepared a grand strategy against Muslims especially those in Punjab and Kashmir. Way back on May 11, 1947, in a top-secret staff meeting   which was attended, among others of the Viceroy’s staff, by Nehru the Vice-President of the Interim Government of undivided British India, Mountbatten had suggested to keep Muslim majority Gurdaspur district outside the purview of the Partition-Principle – that contiguous Muslim majority districts would be awarded to the Muslim Dominion; and contiguous non-Muslim districts would be awarded to the Hindu Dominion.

In the next staff meeting his own Deputy Secretary I D Scott, objected to Mountbatten’s suggestion vis-a-vis Gurdaspur district. Responding to his objection Mountbatten told the meeting that he would not press for keeping Gurdaspur outside the purview of Partition-principle but would instead ask the Boundary Commission “to handover from one side to the other any area within border districts”.

The relevant Minute of 31st Viceroys Staff Meeting of May 12, 1947 makes it amply clear: “Mr Scott said that he was very much opposed to the separate procedure which had been suggested by the meeting the previous day for Gurdaspur. He felt that any departure from the principle of clearly defining the notional boundary between Muslim and non-Muslim majority areas would lead to a spate of demands for other departures. His Excellency the Viceroy said that he did not intend to incorporate the suggestion for Gurdaspur made the previous day. Instead the Boundary Commission would be instructed to arrange for the handover from one side to the other of any area within border districts where there was clearly a majority of the opposite community (pp759-60 and pp 781 Transfer of Power Vol: 10).

Again on August 4, 1947 he said to the Nawab of Bhopal Sir Hamid Ullah Khan (Chancellor of Chamber of Princes) and Maharaja of Indore Yeshwant Rao Holkar: “The State of J&K was so placed geographically that it could join either dominion, provided part of Gurdaspur were put into East Punjab by the Boundary Commission (pp 111 Kashmir: A Disputed Legacy by Alastair Lamb)”.

In between these two events Mountbatten spent a week in Kashmir in mid-June. On the day of his departure was fixed a meeting between him and the Maharaja “to discuss future of Kashmir State” – as if they had not discussed it yet! On that fateful Sunday June 22, 1947 the Maharaja complained of belly-pain and cancelled the meeting “and as a result Mountbatten had to leave for Delhi without discussing the future of this State with the Maharaja”.

Is it believable that they did not discuss the future of Kashmir State during his week-long sojourn here? Anyway, the Maharaja did not take a decision, by August 15 the day of Transfer of Power, as to the accession of Kashmir either to (post-partition) India or Pakistan or as to complete independence. Perhaps Hari Singh wanted to see as to which side of the Boundary Line Gurdaspur would lie after partition. He did not declare independence because he did not mean to keep Kashmir independent. Had he wished independence he would not disgrace his pro-independence Kashmiri Prime Minister Pandit Rama Chandra Kak and replaced him by Janak Singh and, later, Mehr Chand Mahajan, a hawk who played Patel’s game. Maharaja would not have allowed ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Jammu and elsewhere.

Ali Mohammad Jinnah
Ali Mohammad Jinnah

His decision of not acceding, after district Gurdaspur, along with other Muslim-majority areas like Ferozpur, Ajnala, Fazilka, Zira, were shown on the other side of Radcliffe Line, was that he, being what Europeans would call an Oriental Despot, wanted accession with India on his own terms and conditions. But Nehru wanted him to accede as well as share power with National Conference so that he could tell the world that Kashmiri Muslims preferred Hindustan over Pakistan. Sheikh Abdullah and his partisans parroted Nehru’s tune because it guaranteed them political power which could have been a remote possibility in an Independent Kashmir or a Pakistani Kashmir.

Thus Nehru and his Home Minister, Sardar Patel, had their way. Their agents – who could they be other than the Red Shirts of NWFP – had informed them in September that the tribesmen would enter Kashmir (pp 49 Sardar Patel’s Correspondence Vol: I). One can judge their motives by the fact that they did not warn Kashmir Government of the tribal invasion that was in the offing. Yet they later on propagated widely the myth that India came to Kashmir to help it clear tribal invasion.

It was in September when their Red Shirt Pathan mercenaries had reported to their bosses that preparations were afoot by Provincial Muslim League leaders of West Punjab and NWFP to send tribesmen to Kashmir. Did they use the tribal raids as a pretext to land in Kashmir?

Throughout his Viceroyalty Mountbatten did everything to pave the way for bringing Muslim majority Kashmir into India. And when that happened on October 27 he put a rider on Hari Singh’s offer of accession that as and when peace were established in Kashmir the matter would be referred to the people. This laid the foundation stone for Kashmir dispute.

After his return from Lahore, Mountbatten, in order to hide his own role in getting Boundary Awards doctored, ascribed the responsibility of tribal invasion, and emergence and non-resolution of Kashmir dispute to M A Jinnah.

Throughout his Viceroyalty Mountbatten did everything to pave the way for bringing Muslim majority Kashmir into India. And when that happened on October 27 he put a rider on Hari Singh’s offer of accession that as and when peace were established in Kashmir the matter would be referred to the people. This laid the foundation stone for Kashmir dispute. Seemingly, he did it to pass himself as a man of principles, and at the same time to hide his role in the emergence of this dispute.

The controversial Accession documents – no matter if their datelines are genuine or faked – and his subsequent prodding Nehru to take the matter to the UN prove him to be the author of Kashmir dispute. Nehru fell to his suggestions because he wanted to gain time in Kashmir so that he could deal with Junagarh and Hyderabad. Thus Mountbatten did not do any real service to India. On the contrary he led them into a morass in which they got bogged down.  Kashmiri Muslims suffered the most because of the Mountbatten’s creation; the arms manufacturers of Europe and America benefited from it in the long run.

Mountbatten knew well what the verdict of the people of Kashmir would be if the UN conducted a plebiscite there. He wrote on November 7, 1947 to King George VI: “I am convinced that a population containing such a high proportion of Moslems would certainly vote to join Pakistan (pp: 354 Freedom at Midnight by Larry Collins).” If he was convinced of this fact then why did he, with the help of Cyril Radcliffe, Chairman Punjab Boundary Commission, manipulate Punjab Boundary awards to place three out of four sub-districts (Gurdaspur, Batala, and Pathankot) of Muslim majority Gurdaspur district inside (post-Partition) India to furnish it a road link with Kashmir?

Reasons can only be guessed: he disliked Jinnah. As Viceroy he had dominated everything and everyone in India except Jinnah. Towering Jinnah was always dressed better than the Viceroy; smoked his pipe in front of him, who, as Viceroy, was by far the most powerful man on earth, even more powerful than British Prime Minister; refused him the luxury of creating history by becoming the first Governor General of Pakistan. Moreover, his wife Edwina, continuously prodded her husband to side with Nehru because she too disliked Jinnah because he was unromantic! (Conclded)

Read the first part here

4 COMMENTS

  1. WTF?

    What a load of crock.

    Kashmir documents were written by a maharaja who lived long after partition.

    Why would he fake them and live and not contradict.

    This is Paki terror nonsense.

    O Pakis Jinna’s house is burnt by Baloch freedom fighters.

    Quit this nonsense now.

  2. He also announced accession to India via Radio.

    Was that fake too?

    He maintained that he had acceded to India throughout his life.

    Bullshit Paki propoganda needs to be ridiculed.

    Then they say RAW CIA MOSSAD were responsible for Munich attacks on Israel and Ghosts fought in 1965.

  3. I know you will not publish it but FACTS are FACTS and HISTORY is as HOLY as any RELIGION cause You can not DENY or Change the History. Drunk Jinnah Munafiq Azam created troubles from Muslims of Hindustan ,We are still suffering after 67 years. Time has come disclose these facts so new generation can understand what was BEHIND the scenes when Jinnah a British KUTTA was taking orders from Winston Churchill and meeting US Consul General in Dehli to hatch MUSLIM KICK OUT And Deportation of Muslims scheme JUST LIKE SPAIN.

    Kashmir Problem is the result of Mr. Jinnah’s Blunders:-
    1) He agreed to, just a couple of weeks before Partition of India, without consulting the Muslim leadership of Bengal, Punjab & Aasam, (the Muslim majority provinces), the division of these three provinces also on the basis of religion.
    2) The State of Kashmir was a “Land-Locked” area. It had only one exit, road link, to the other parts of the country which was through district Gurdaspore, of the (undivided) Punjab. If as per original Demand for Pakistan i.e. as per Lahore Resolution of 1940, Punjab had not been divided, the Maharaja of Kashmir would have no choice but to accede to Pakistan.
    3) Mr.Jinnah’s arrogance had annoyed all British Officers, who were in India supervising the Independence Operations. Even the Viceroy, Lord Mountbeaten. was sick of him. When Lord Asmay, a member of the British team, asked the Viceroy to propose to Jinnah to accept him (the Viceroy) as the common Governor General for India and Pakistan, Mountbeaten replied : “ Look Asmay ! I am no more prepared to hear ‘A NO’ from this arrogant Jinnah .” (Ref. “Last days of the British Raj” by Leanord Moslay).
    4) As said above, Gurudaspore, in the north of the Punjab, was the only District through which Kashmir had an access in the south. When under the supervision of an English man, Mr. Redcliff, enumeration of population was taking place in that district, neither Mr. Jinnah visited the place nor could depute any effective personality to supervise & check the enumeration. This gave an open chance to the Britishers & the Hindus, to manipulate the result when they treated / counted the Ahmedi sect of Muslims as Non-Muslims. Then got the district declared as Non-Muslim Majority area and gave it to the Indian Punjab. Thus Mr. Jinnah’s mistake & carelessness, gave India an access (Road-link) into the Kashmir, the advantage India is having up to date !
    5) Then Mr.Jinnah annoyed the Kashmiri Muslim – leadership, Shaikh Abdullah and his associates, when he sent his personal Kashmiri Secretary, to Maharaja Kashmir, with an offer to give him all the facilities and benefits, what he was enjoying during the British Raj, if he would accede to Pakistan ! (Ref: Shaikh Abdullah’s Autobiography).
    I too remember that some time in Seventies, Farooq Abdullah, older son of the Shaikh, visited Lahore. He was a personal guest of Mr. Khalil Dar, owner of Kashmir Emporium, a shop on the Mall Road, next to Classic Book Depot. During a dinner, Dr. Farooq Abdullah disclosed that his father did not have a soft opinion for Mr. Jinnah considering him as an extremely selfish & ambitious person. He would always condemn Mr. Jinnah’s decision of agreeing to divide the Punjab, Bengal & Asam on the basis of religion and particularly refer to Mr. Jinnah’s Offer to Maharaja Kashmir for acceding to Pakistan when Jinnah considered Kashmiris as a “Saleable Commodity”.
    6) Soon after the Independence, when the Raja acceded to India.That was his Legal Right as per JINNAH agreement with
    Independence documents signed.That is the bLUNDER which show show Jinnah as a British Mole and RAT who destroyed
    The Muslims civilization ,language and culture by surrendering 36 MUSLIM states in INDIA like Hyderabad ,Junagadh,Baroda,Awadh,Bhopal DOUBLE THE LAND SIZE OF PAKISTAN. It is shameful Paky government,Intellectuals
    Due to their MUNAFIQNA approach to the life never say anything about Pork eater Jinnah who was a fox in the skin of a sheep.
    Mr. Jinnah indirectly instructed NWFP Pathans to raid the Kashmir and get it liberated from the Raja but that created massacre
    And chaos which is still continuous since last 67 years in Kashmiris with huge number sof Orphans and WIDOWS,Paradise Kashmir has turned into a HELL due to Idiot Jinnah MUNAFIQ AZAM who was a Paid British Agent.

  4. Everyone were wrong to some extent.
    Jinnah was of firm opinion that accession was the prerogative of the Ruler but in Kashmir’s case he called it a fraud.
    Nehru rather than take collective decision with Patel, relied heavily on Mountbatten.
    Sheikh Abdullah may be said to have been swayed by lure of power.
    In all I feel the Maharaja’s decision of staying independent with cooperation from both India and Pakistan would have been the best option then but he lacked his Kashmiri (valley) subject’s support.

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