The period of 1947-48 was extra traumatic for Kashmir because the barbaric Qabails(Pashtun tribesmen) led by Pakistani Army regulars in civil clothing attacked Kashmir via Baramulla, causing widespread deaths, looting, and large-scale migration of Hindus & Sikhs from Muzaffarabad & Baramulla (October 1947). Hindu villages were looted, women raped and killed, and burnt at times by their own families to prevent their falling into the hands of the barbaric hordes. Maharaja Hari Singh’s army, led by the valiant Brig Rajinder Singh gave battle in true Rajput tradition with just a contingent of 180 soldiers - he battled the marauders for 4 days (23.10 to 27.10.1947) at different locations – Uri, Mahura, Rampur & Baramulla, till they all fell, one by one in the call of duty. His sacrifice gave the Indian Govt time to complete its diplomatic maneuvers and rush the Indian Army by air to defend Srinagar. Brigadier Rajinder Singh was posthumously decorated with Mahavir Chakra in 1949, the first-ever MVC in the History of the Indian Army, and recognized as the savior of Kashmir.

Indian Army reached Srinagar airport on October 26, 1947, in the shape of the gallant Ist Sikhs led by Col Ranjit Rai. The first task was to secure the airport so that more troops could be flown in. Col Rai decided to confront the raiders by attacking them – he rushed towards Baramulla in hired buses/ trucks and stopped the Huns in their tracks; alas Col Rai and his team of 146 sacrificed their lives but gave their other colleagues time to regroup. In the next few days, planeloads of the Indian Army came to Kashmir to save it from the Pakistanis. By November 13, their impact started showing results - raiders were on the run as Indian forces recaptured Baramulla, Uri, and various other areas. However, Nehru, in his ambition to be recognized as a Statesman and much against the advice of his Army Commanders, committed the biggest blunder of his life by asking the Army to stop when the enemy was on the run; on December 31, 1947, he took the Kashmir issue to the UN.

Sheikh Abdullah was a wily politician – and whatever venom he lacked was supplied by his second in command – Mirza Afzal Beg (colloquially, Afzal Tunde, probably because of some physical deformity). Both exhibited their Machiavellian mindsets by keeping channels to Jinnah as well as Nehru open in the hope of negotiating a better deal from both parties! Jinnah understood their game and bluntly refused to meet his emissaries (Bakshi & Sadiq); in any case, he is reported to have told Abdullah not to expect ‘any special privileges’ from Pakistan! That left joining India as the only viable option! However, Abdullah was able to exploit the naïve Nehru (who had personal biases against Maharaja Hari Singh) and wangle extra facilities for his Sheikhdom – something that a tough nationalist like Patel would never have allowed.

A very interesting fallout of the 1947-48 crisis was that all Hindu & Sikh refugees from Muzaffarabad & Uri were encouraged to move on to Jammu instead of allowing them to settle in the Kashmir valley. Later, in 1962-63, following the China conflict, Ladakhi Muslim refugees who came to Kashmir were settled in the Eidgah area of Srinagar city while the Buddhists were encouraged to move out of J&K! Obviously, the plan to change the demographics of Kashmir always existed in the Muslim rulers of J&K, post-1947.

Another interesting facet that has been completely wiped out from our history writings of 1947-48 is the role Kashmiri Pandits played in organizing Civic Defense committees, along with Kashmiri Muslims, mostly National Conference workers. The role of Shaheed Maqbool Sherwani, the hero of Baramulla still finds mention in some places (though much muted, by now). The name of Shaheed Poshkar Nath Zadoo stands obliviated from the chronicles of Kashmir history. I remember reading about him in our history books in class 2-3 but as I tried to search for more details recently, none existed. In the words of George Orwell, he appears to have become an ’un-person’ (a person whose records of existence have been erased!)
 

Another subtle maneuver was in the field of education, particularly technical education. The bias against Kashmiri Pandits was so pronounced that even toppers were neglected for admission to Engineering/ Medical/ Veterinary/ Agriculture and other such technical courses. Almost 80% ‘of the seats’ were ‘unofficially reserved’ for Muslims; Jammu Hindus were placated by granting 15% admissions and the balance 5% was open to Kashmiri Pandits / Sikhs/ Ladakhi students. The concept of merit was just thrown out of the window. The

Medical College in Srinagar was established in 1959 and the Engg College (REC) in 1960, due to the efforts of Gulam Mohammad Bakshi, then Prime Minister. Govt developed a handy tool for sending well-connected/ meritorious Kashmiri Pandit boys to study in Colleges outside J&K. The idea was to encourage them to migrate and ultimately settle down outside Kashmir.

Abdullah and his cohorts were power hungry and ideology always took a backseat. Their objective always was a Kashmir Sheikhdom. Abdullah had very carefully positioned himself as the sole champion of the Muslims of Kashmir. It appears Abdullah was secretly negotiating with Pakistan for joining them on one hand and with the British (for establishing an independent, British/American-backed state) on the other. By 1953, Nehru had learned that Abdullah had ulterior designs and was forced to pull the rug from under Sheikh’s feet – his weaknesses for the man notwithstanding!! This led to major socio-political upheaval in Kashmir.

The coup against Abdullah was led by his deputy, Gulam Mohammad Bakshi who ruled the state as Prime Minister almost up to 1963. Bakshi proved to be an able administrator and was able to set the development agenda to a very large extent. He adopted a carrot & stick policy for Kashmiri Muslims and was able to establish his authority, by and large. In his time, rice & atta became available at rock-bottom prices (0.40p/kg).