Kashmir-article-370

How Kashmir got Article 370: History retold

Hari Singh appeared to chart out his own way without acceding to India or Pakistan. It signed a standstill treaty with Pakistan, which breached the agreement by invading Jammu and Kashmir in October 1947. India did not intervene till Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession with India and sought help from New Delhi.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Jammu and Kashmir acquired its modern shape under Ranjit Singh
• Kashmir was first called in Kashyapmar which was corrupted to become Kashmir.
• Hari Singh sought privileges for his people on the lines of a law that denied outsiders right to own property

Kashmir owes its origin to a legendary rishi (ascetic-scholar) Kashyap, who is credited to have reclaimed it from a huge lake that existed where Kashmir Valley is located today. The land was first called in ancient literature Kashyapmar, which was corrupted to become Kashmir.

Maurya emperor Ashoka had a strong connection with Kashmir. He founded the city of Srinagar and brought Buddhism to Kashmir, which saw a number of ruling dynasties till the middle of fourteenth century. Around this time, a Tibetan Buddhist refugee Rinchana, who later converted to Islam, established first Muslim dynasty in Kashmir. When Akbar became the Mughal emperor, he annexed Kashmir to his empire.

The state of Jammu and Kashmir acquired its modern shape under Ranjit Singh, who established a Sikh confederation and annexed Kashmir from the Mughal empire in early 19th century. The administration of Jammu and Kashmir was given to a local chieftain from the Dogra community, who expanded it by capturing Ladakh and Baltistan for the Sikh empire.

By this time, the British rule of East India Company was getting stronger in India. The company had successfully challenged the advance of Sikh empire, whose leader Ranjit Singh was forced to sign a Treaty of Amritsar in 1809, which was formalised in 1846 after first Anglo-Sikh war. This treaty decided the fate of Jammu and Kashmir.

The British trader-rulers "sold" the dominion of Jammu and Kashmir to Dogra king Gulab Singh for Rs 75 lakh. The Dogra king ruled over the regions of Jammu, Kashmir Valley, Gilgit-Baltistan and Ladakh. The arrangement continued till 1947, when the British divided the Indian subcontinent into two countries - India and Pakistan.