Pakistan has repeatedly questioned the legal status of the instrument of accession, claiming that Maharaja Hari Singh has no legal authority to decide on matters affecting his state, as his power has already been usurped by popular uprisings. Despite some minor revolts, the state was still under the rule of its Maharajah, and under international law, the new government of Jammu and Kashmir had not yet acquired statehood, as it did not meet the conditions of a sovereign government with the power to deal with external affairs. Under international law, a dictated treaty is legally as valid as a treaty freely concluded on both sides, confirming that the Maharaja is the competent legal authority for the execution of the instrument of accession. According to the Honourable Cities of Edolphus of the U.S. House of Representatives, some 90,000 Kashmiri Muslims have been killed by the Indian government since 1988. [448] Human Rights Watch says armed militant organizations in Kashmir have also attacked civilians, but not to the same extent as Indian security forces. [449] Since 1989, more than 50,000 people are estimated to have died during the conflict. [450] Data released in 2011 by the Jammu and Kashmir government indicates that 43,460 people have been killed in the insurgency in Kashmir over the past 21 years. Of these, 21,323 are militants, 13,226 civilians killed by militants, 3,642 civilians killed by security forces and 5,369 are police killed by militants. [451] The Jammu and Kashmir Civil Society Coalition says there have been more than 70,000 killings, the majority by the Indian armed forces. [452] Ladakh lies between the Kunlun Mountains to the north and the Great Himalayas to the south. [43] The capitals of the region are Leh and Kargil.
It is under Indian administration and was part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir until 2019. It is one of the least populated areas of the region and is mainly inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent. [43] Aksai Chin is a vast high-mountain salt desert that reaches heights of up to 5,000 meters (16,000 feet). Aksai Chin is geographically part of the Tibetan plateau and is called the soda plain. The area is almost uninhabited and has no permanent settlements. For legal reasons, the accession of the State of Jammu and Kashmir to India completely excludes Pakistan, which manifests itself as the self-proclaimed protector of the rights of the people of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, while illegally administering nearly half of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (Gilgit Baltistan and Pakistan administered by Jammu and Kashmir). The current situation of mistrust and fundamentalism is unlikely to change without structured and genuine dialogue at the diplomatic level. All stakeholders must have a sense of ownership and efforts must be made to ensure positive progress, including the fight against (cross-border) terrorism.
Pakistan and India must urgently understand that, although they are sovereign and independent in ensuring peace in South Asia, their existence is more interdependent than before. Interdependent operations, preparation for peace, economic progress, the growing threat of terrorism and the proper introspection of all parties concerned should require a solution based on the principles of coexistence. Lord Mountbatten, then Governor-General, wrote to the Maharaja after signing the instrument of accession that he wished to hold a plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir as soon as he was liberated from the invader. Although this declaration proved to be the most controversial element of Jammu and Kashmir`s accession to India, it should be noted that this “letter” is not legally part of the instrument of accession. From a legal point of view, it does not affect the legality of the instrument of accession. The Indian Independence Act does not provide for conditional accession, as that would not be its parliamentary policy, and confirms that the instrument of accession legally and constitutionally binds the State of Jammu and Kashmir to India. Article 257 of the Constitution of Pakistan is a provision relating to Jammu and Kashmir administered by Pakistan; “If (and after) the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir decide to join Pakistan, their relations with Pakistan will be determined in accordance with the wishes of the people of the state.” This provision is contrary to the Interim Constitutional Act of 1974 on the “Azad” of Jammu and Kashmir, which clearly states that anyone who disseminates an opinion or action in a manner that harms the ideology of Pakistan will be disqualified. Pakistan`s constitution only recognizes political parties that remain loyal to Pakistan, unlike India. The Indian government recognizes all “pro-freedom” parties (including those that call for secession from India or Pakistan). In addition, the rule of the subject of state in Gilgit Baltistan was repealed in 1974, which legally allowed Pakistan to alter the socio-economic demographics, affecting the local culture of the territory.
Today, the people of Jammu and Kashmir, who have trusted Indian institutions such as Parliament and the Supreme Court, feel defeated and betrayed. By dismembering and fraudulently removing the state, which is legally and legally ours, they have further complicated the Kashmir conflict. Indian security forces attacked civilians during search operations, tortured and summarily executed prisoners in custody, and murdered civilians in retaliation. Rape is more common during raids, cordons and searches, where men are detained for identification in parks or schoolyards while security forces search their homes. In these situations, security forces often inflict collective punishment on civilians, most often by beating or attacking residents and burning their homes. Rape is used as a means of targeting women whom security forces accuse of being militant sympathizers; With their rape, the security forces are trying to punish and humiliate the entire community. [486] Pakistan`s proposed decision to illegally annex Gilgit Baltistan, change the basic principles of the current Jammu and Kashmir issue, and cement China`s role in this dispute is a response to concerns expressed by Beijing. China considers it internationally indefensible to invest billions of dollars in a road that runs through disputed territory claimed by both India and Pakistan. If Pakistan imposes its sovereign control over Gilgit Baltistan, India has the political and moral right to fully integrate Jammu and Kashmir into India and to remove Article 370 of its constitution, which grants Jammu and Kashmir a special status. Any solution to the long-standing problem of Jammu and Kashmir is only jeopardized by such events. The word was mentioned in a Hindu scriptural mantra worshipping the Hindu goddess Sharada, and it is mentioned that he lived in the land of Kashmir or could have been a reference to the Sharada Peeth. According to the UN Security Council resolution signed by the two countries (13.
August 1948), Pakistan is legally obliged to withdraw its forces from the region first and India to reduce its forces in the region to a minimum in order to maintain law and order. In accordance with this condition, the UN Security Council has scheduled a referendum to determine the future of the territory, although the condition for the withdrawal of the armed forces has not yet been met. The parties to the conflict fought three more wars in 1965, 1971 and 1999 and signed bilateral agreements, namely the Karachi Agreement (1949), the Tashkent Agreement (1966), the Simla Agreement (1972) and the Lahore Declaration (1999). Article 370 was drafted in the Constitution of India, which grants the State of Jammu and Kashmir special autonomy status in accordance with the instrument of accession. This article stipulates that the State shall consent to the application of laws by the Indian Parliament, with the exception of those relating to communications, defence and foreign affairs. The central government could not exercise its power to interfere in other areas of state government. The Indian Constitution, adopted in 1949, granted Jammu and Kashmir special status through Article 370. Article 370 mandated the union of Jammu and Kashmir with India and symbolized the treaty between the two entities. In 1989, a widespread popular uprising began in Kashmir.[221][222] After the elections to the Landtag Assembly in 1987, some results were controversial. This led to the formation of militant wings and marked the beginning of the mujahideen uprising, which continues to this day. [223] India says the insurgency was largely sparked by Afghan mujahideen who invaded the Kashmir Valley after the end of the Soviet-Afghan war. [224] Yasin Malik, leader of a faction of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, was one of the Kashmiris who organized militancy in Kashmir, along with Ashfaq Majeed Wani, Javaid Ahmad Mir, and Abdul Hamid Sheikh.