Adam Smith’s Invisible Hand and Kashmir

The genesis of the Kashmir problem as described in DAWN:

http://www.dawn.com/2003/10/09/op.htm#1

DAWN, Karachi, Pakistan
09 October 2003 Thursday 12 Shaban 1424

Kashmir: the only solution
By M. Asghar Khan

..... It would be well to examine its causes, the mistakes that we have made and to make a realistic appraisal of the situation as it exists today.

It is on record that Vallabhbhai Patel, the powerful minister in Jawaharlal Nehru`s government, had offered to Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan in 1947, that Pakistan should keep Kashmir and let India have Hyderabad. This offer was refused.

Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan and presumably the Quaid-i-Azam felt that we could have both; Kashmir, because it had a Muslim majority, and Hyderabad because it had a Muslim ruler. It is also known that Shaikh Mohammad Abdullah, the chief minister of Kashmir, asked to see the Quaid-i-Azam in 1947 but was not given an interview.

It is also known that the Maharaja of Kashmir was indecisive about acceding to India or to Pakistan. Without making any efforts to make contact with him, Khan Abdul Qayyum Khan, the chief minister of the NWFP, was allowed to unleash a tribal invasion of the state.

With the approval of the Pakistan government regular Pakistan army officers and men were allowed to join the government-sponsored tribal attack on the valley. When the tribesmen reached the valley, they began loot and plunder and after filling their vehicles began to
return to the tribal area of the North-West Frontier leaving the small number of regular Pakistan army officers and men and a few tribesmen to mount an attack on Srinagar. Since this attack was delayed for about a week and because of the return of a large number of tribesmen to their homes, the Indian army got the opportunity to rush troops to
Srinagar and save the city from the tribal hordes. The Maharaja fled the city and acceded to India. .....
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Excerpt from Article in DAWN (07/27/99):

Kargil - before and after
By Zafar Iqbal

``MILITARILY, the critical point which was supposed to have created the Kashmir problem was the hiatus in the tribesman`s march towards Srinagar when they stopped for a bit of ``rest and recreation`` (R&R) at Baramulla about a dozen miles from Srinagar airport. Their concept of recreation included a diversion into some looting and pillage and possibly a bit of rape on the side.

Anyway, whatever the truth, this window of opportunity permitted the Indians to capture Srinagar airport and bring in reinforcements; at least so the story is told. The ultimate result was the cease-fire line.``
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DAWN, Karachi, Pakistan
10 April, 2000

Kashmir: time to change tack
By Brig (retd) M. Sher Khan

``The story of Kashmir is a long saga, which started at the very inception of the new-born nation of Pakistan. While the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir was wavering about deciding which of the two new dominions his largely Muslim state should accede to, large tribal lashkars from the NWFP region invaded the state with the aim of forcing the Maharaja`s hand in acceding to Pakistan. When these lashkars were in a position to seize Srinagar and its airport, the lust for spoils, loot and pillage got the better of them. The Maharaja panicked and sought Indian intercession, the price of which was that he should first sign an instrument of accession.``
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Excerpt from Article in Pakistan Link (1/28/2000):

Men and Events That Mattered in Pakistan
By Mohammad Ashraf Chaudhry

``The Kashmir problem which brought Pakistan to the three most costly wars it fought with India with the fourth looming on the horizon, might have been solved had Liaquat Ali Khan, the then PM, accepted Sardar Patel`s proposal to exchange Hyderabad with the Valley. As Sardar Shaukat Hayat puts it, Liaquat Ali Khan brushed aside the proposal by saying, ``Sardar Sahib, do you take me for a fool to accept a few hills in exchange for the vast plains of Deccan?`` India usurped Hyderabad anyway and forcefully occupied Kashmir too, leaving Pakistanis ruminating as to who was right, Liaquat Ali Khan or the Sardar of Wah who insisted on accepting it.

If this sounds somewhat dramatic, here is another event that let Kashmir slip away from Pakistan`s lap. In 1948 the, Tribal ``Mujahidins``, brought by Major Khurshid, had reached Srinagar which lay deserted. As they put their hands on the National Bank and came by some 3 lac rupees, it so happened that while the Major insisted on taking away that money as it belonged to the government of Pakistan, the ``Mujahidins`` on the contrary persisted in
their demand to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha along with it, and in this tug of war they lost three most precious days. This lull and halt provided India enough time to rush its deployments to the area and what happened next to the rest of the story as far as Kashmir is concerned is well known to all.``
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3056133.stm

BBC News
Friday, 11 July, 2003, 07:04 GMT 08:04 UK

The BBC report doesn`t leave much to imagination in reporting on the reminiscing Khan Shah Afridi:

..... He vividly recalls his march past Baramullah and until they were a few kilometres away from Srinagar, the Kashmir capital.

``On the way we fired at whoever came in our way. I don`t remember how many we killed, but they were quite a few,`` .....

.....Asked how many joined him for the journey to Kashmir, he said there were a lot.

``There were Mohmand tribesmen and we Afridis. Everyone carried his own gun.``

``The Pir of Maniki Sharif told us we will have to fight. [We were told] it was a war between Muslims and infidels and that we will get Kashmir freed.`` .....

..... He also admits to some looting by the invading tribesmen but denies that they raped women, something they were charged with.

``They were mainly people from Azakhel who looted. We did not put our hands on women. We did not put our hands on wrong things.`` .....

..... Asked whether he remembered the massacre of Christians in a convent in Baramullah, he said: ``Our leader Suhbat Khan was not a good man. He used to put hands on such people.`` .....
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This a very good article.

I noticed several traders selling Kashmiri stuff as far as Morocco and Malaysia. Increasingly too, products from Indian Kashmir are being displayed in Pakistani markets.

In one of my earlier posts I had written that if Kashmir goes independent under UN (a hypothetical situation), then it will tilt towards that country which will offer Kashmiris better economic prospects. The valley of Kashmir has its economic linkages with India through roads running from North to South. It does not have economic linkage with Pakistan with roads from East to West. Therefore, imho, Kashmiris will tilt more towards India.

I had also written that if the quality of services offered by Pakistan and Indian are similar or even fractionally better by India, Kashmiris will deal with Pakistan, because of their religious affinities. If the quality is lot better by Indians, then Kashmiris will tilt towards Indians.

Initially, Pakistanis will have some advantages in winning the hearts and minds of Kashmiris. If we are not able to meet their expectations by a small margin, they will continue to tilt towards us, but will move towards Indians if we fail by big margin.

Having said all this, and even if India confirms through its independent research that economically Kashmiris will tilt towards India in the medium to long term and may even decide to merge with it, it will not agree to a plebiscite or to an independent Kashmir under UN. The reason is their under-confidence with Kashmiris and full confidence in their abilities to crush the insurgency by brutal force due to the support they are receiving from the powers that be in the wake of anti-Muslimness that pervades in the US and the West subsequent to 9/11.

rsridhar at # 16:

``Pakistan`s refusal to take back the dead bodies of the Kashmiris killed just a year ago in Kargil and its eagerness to accord all military honours to the bodies of the Punjabi soldiers has given a powerful fillip to the independence movement in the region.``

Your ignorance amazes me. Top Military honor of Nishan-e-Haider was given to two Shaeeds from NWFP and Northern territories. One of them was from my own town having a Kashmiri ancestory. Now go and do some research on who am I talking about.

My God! what a disappointment this Doctor from South has become?

Although I travel a lot, I am yet to meet a Doctor from South this extremist in views and this frustrated in his life.

Is urstruly a masochist?
He seems to enjoy the bashing he gets!!

Inyourface,

I should have said all sides...

I think rightly or wrongly Pakistan is part of the equation. I think this boneheaded attitude on all sides will cause more bloodshed.

I am glad that saner heads prevail in the Indian Government which considers Pakistan as one of the parties... as do the now useless UN Resolutions.

-YLH

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Guys I think Urstuly is posting in the form of satire, a format inspired maybe from a teavher at a Community College on the east coast.

#33 by UrsFoolishly on October 10, 2003 8:12am PT

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Look Indians, I asked you very nicely to stop the exploitation of Kasmiris now but you are not listening. Instead you are asking me to tell you how you are exploiting kashmiris. Well, how should I know, I am not an economist

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Now that you have admitted your ignorance.. I suggest politely that u should keep quiet!!!

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but one thing I am sure of is that you are very very bad people and that is proof enough that you are exploiting Kashmiris.

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You learnt in your University of Jihad/Mullahism.. or what ever it is.. to hate.. no matter what!!... and forgot to ask why?... above sentences are proof...

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So for the last time I am asking you very nicely to stop it now. Ok?
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so what is coming next?.. Jihad ched doge??? ...

Lots of love,
CC

ps:- my specially rude *## for urstr... other chowkies kindly excuse me....