Jammu and Kashmir have immense significance geographically as well as historically.
The state of Jammu-Kashmir, including the POJK and the area under the illegal occupation of the Chinese, came into the present form of state, on March 16th 1846, as per the treaty signed by Maharaja Gulab Singh and the British Government. It was known as the Amritsar Treaty. The region to the right side of the river Indus were annexed during the regime of Maharaja Ranbir Singh.
During this era, the state was divided into provinces of :
A,) Jammu, B) Kashmir C) Ladakh D)Gilgit and Frontier region.
Within two months of Bharat attaining independence in 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh acceded the state of J&K to the union of Bharat.
But, Pakistan was not ready to accept the Redcliff demarcation and it initiated a disguised war, occupying a part of the area under its control most unfortunately, the area still, to date, remains under the illegal occupation of Pakistan (POJK and Gilgit – Baltistan) and China (Aksai Chin) and no strong and fruitful steps were taken, ever.
The total area of the state of Jammu-Kashmir (TOTAL – inclusive of POJK+Gilgit+Baltistan) is 222, 236 sq km.
Out of it, the area under illegal Pakistani occupation (POJK+Gilgit+Baltistan) is 78,114 sq km.
The area of Jammu-Kashmir under Chinese operation (Aksai Chin) is 42,685 sq km.
Thus, the total area under Pakistani and Chinese occupation is 78,114 sq km + 42,685 Sq km = 120,799 sq km. (5,130 sq km has been ceded to China, out of the total area).
Bharat has 101,437 sq km under their possession.
The region of Gilgit-Baltistan has approximately two million population. Baltistan region is divided into two districts. Eg. Gangche and Skardu.. The Gilgit region has five districts, Astore, Diamer, Ghizer, Hunza Nagar and Gilgit. The city of Gilgit is the capital city.
The region comprises Shia, Nurbakshi, Shia-Ismaili, Ahlehadith and Sunni religious groups and ethnic communities of Shin, Balti, Tatar, Mon, Khowar, Dom, Gujjar, Tibetan and Kashmiri.
Shia, Balti, Wakhi, Khowar, Gujjari Burushaski, Puriki and Kashmiri languages are spoken here. The region of Gilgit-Baltistan, formerly known as the Northern area, is situated in the North of Jammu-Kashmir. To its Southwest, the POJK and to the West, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is situated. The Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan lies in its Northwest and Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region of China is in its North.
The region is sparsely populated and is The region is administered by Pakistan and it covers an area of over 72, 971 km. The area is highly mountainous. Though the capital city is Gilgit, Skardu is the largest city in the region.
The history of the region in the last seven decades has been catastrophic. The region is a part of the state of Jammu-Kashmir but there have been numerous attempts to amalgamate it with Pakistan. The authorities in Islamabad have remained unsuccessful in implementing such a state as they fear that it would weaken their claim on Kashmir.
Though Pakistan maintains the administration of Gilgit-Baltistan in its control, the status of the region is ambiguous. It is not even a part of the POJK. With undefined status, there is no transparency of accountability in the governance. Sectarian violence and unemployment have been riding stiffly.
The Gilgit Baltistan Assembly (GBLA) approved a resolution on the 11th of September 2012, demanding complete provincial status for the region.
The move of the assembly received enormous criticism from within the Gilgit Baltistan region and across the world.
MLA Nawaz Khan Naji, of the Balwaristan National Front opposed the bill.
The Kashmir National Party, established in 1985 supported the Independence of Kashmir but did not approve of the state’s affinity with Pakistan. Hence, leaders of KNP, Abbas Butt, Dr Shabir Choudhary and Zubair Ansari issued a joint statement, renewing the KNP stand that Gilgit-Baltistan is a legal and constitutional part of the state of Jammu-Kashmir; and the entire state is disputed and forcibly divided and occupied. The state of Jammu-Kashmir is one political entity and must not be divided in any form or shape.
People’s Liberation Army of China attacked Gilgit-Baltistan in 1949 and occupied Shimsal, Raskam, Aghil and Shaksgam valleys.
As Indo-Soviet relations grew stronger, it became mandatory for Pakistan and China to establish a strategic alliance.
However, the alliance was only affirmed by sacrificing 5,800 square kilometres of Shimshal and Raskam valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan to Pakistan in 1963. Very soon, after occupying the area, thousands of Chinese soldiers and workers arrived in Gilgit-Baltistan to construct the Karakoram Highway. The construction was completed in 1978 and it gave Pakistan, an additional edge to infiltrate into Bharatiya Jammu and Kashmir through the transportation network of Gilgit – Baltistan. For China, too, it gave easy access to the waters of Hind Mahasagar (Indian Ocean). Thus, through Gilgit-Baltistan, China acquired a safe approach route to South Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
The Karakoram Highway has enabled thousands of Chinese tourists, Engineers, Traders and Merchants, Pilgrims and Students to use it as a transit route.
The Chinese Military officials regularly visit the field command office of Gilgit where Pakistani military headquarters is established. With the support and encouragement of Pakistani authorities, Chinese companies have ventured into constructing bridges and roads in different valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan.
The Geo-strategic significance of the region has increased manifolds after Pakistan-China joined hands to construct Gwadar port in the Persian Gulf.
China, discerning that the Karakoram Highway was an ideal route for maximising its import of Fossil fuels, copper and iron ores, for ascending its economic progress, commenced with a plan to convert the Karakoram Highway into an expressway, build a railway parallel to it and pass Oil and Gas pipeline through the series of tunnels in the Karakoram mountain range.
Historically, Jammu and Kashmir did not have any border dispute with Tibet and China, till 1947.
Aksai Chin was a part of Jammu-Kashmir that had legally acceded to Bharat. Infact, the Maharaja of J&K collected revenue from the village of Mansar, the only village in the harsh and unendurable Aksai Chin. Till then, China never disputed J&K’s claim of revenue.
In 1842, Treaty of Chanshul was signed by Jammu and Kashmir, Tibet and China. The East India Company, ruling over Bharat, during the time, became party to the treaty. The separate signatures were signed between the Maharaja of Jammu-Kashmir with Tibet,Tibet with China and China with Jammu and Kashmir state. Clear maps were exchanged between the parties involved, for a common perception.
When China occupied Tibet in 1950s, Bharat, instead of opposing it aggressively on the basis of the Chanshul treaty, accepted it meekly.
During the 1962 Sino-India war, Bharat lost badly and lost Aksai Chin to China. Bharat did not foresee that this war could take place. It is unimaginable why Pandit Nehru trusted the Chinese and believed that border disputes would never escalate into war. Though Sardar Patel had warned him about China much before this war, back in 1948–49 when China had started to kill the buffer zone between Bharat and China, viz. Tibet.
He had suggested purchasing fighter jets that would enable Bharat to counter Chinese aggression but Pandit Nehru was ignorant to his advice and did not arm Bharat well enough to defend Aksai Chin.
It was the bravery of the armed forces that Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir were not lost. Had they been armed sufficiently Bharat would’ve not lost Aksai Chin.
During the 1962 war, the Chinese whipped Bharatiya soldiers but withdrew from the territory, once the war was over but it did not withdraw from the 15,000 square miles of land of Aksai Chin, that belonged to Bharat. China needed it as a strategic road from Buddhist Tibet to its North Western Xinjiang province populated by Uyghur Muslims
The eight-lane expressway now passes through the Union Territory of Ladakh.
Bharat, remained in slumber in the 1950s, when China began building the highway and later, strategically occupied Aksai Chin (through bullets) for their Eastern highway.
As China is connected to Pakistan through the Karakoram Highway (KKH) and 580 km of Karakoram Highway runs through the Gilgit-Baltistan region of POJK, China often uses this highway for illegal transfer of Nuclear materials to Pakistan.
Hydel projects of the Comat dam and the rising of the heights of the Mangla dam in POJK are being worked out by China.
Zhejiang Design Institute of Water Conservancy and Hydroelectric Power of China has carried out feasibility studies on building small and medium-sized dams. Building highways and railways through POJK and issuing Paper visas to people travelling to China from Jammu-Kashmir, was under consideration by the Chinese Government and this was attempted to project the status of J&K as a disputed territory.
The security implications of Chinese presence in Jammu and Kashmir are extremely huge.
The sectarian violence has been prevalent in the region since 1980. The Sunni hardliners, originally from the Pakistani states, settled here in Gilgit-Baltistan and along with them brought severe hatred towards Shia and Islamia.
The construction of the Karakoram Highway changed the accessibility of Pakistani citizens to Gilgit-Baltistan. The easy accessibility began changing the demographic composition of this region. Along with those seeking economic gains, several religious fanatics also migrated to this region.
Noting some of the sectarian killings and significant human rights violations in Gilgit-Baltistan.
A) The Kohistan Killings that assassinated 18 on February 28th, 2012.
B) 25 Shia were killed while traveling on a bus, in Lalusar on 16th August 2012.
C) The massacre at Chilas on April 3rd, 2012 killed 15-20.
The United Nations Secretary-General Ban-Ki-Moon also took note of this brutal violence. He issued a statement condemning the killing of Shia Muslims in a bus in Northern Pakistan. Nevi Pollay, the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights in Pakistan, expressed deep concern over unbridled killing and especially imprisonment and atrocities towards nationalist political leaders.
As per the survey by Abdul Hamid Khan, chairman of BNF (Balwaristan National Front), around 900 youth had been assassinated, 1000 had been disabled and 40 were missing. Several buildings had been destroyed due to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.
Massive protests have broken out in the Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan region over the arrest of a Shia cleric under Pakistan’s reinforced blasphemy laws. The protests are said to be the largest that the region has ever seen, with slogans of “Chalo, chalo Kargil chalo” rending the air.
Shia cleric Agha Baqir al-Hussaini was booked and arrested over his comments at a religious gathering.
Agha Baqir al-Hussaini was booked for his remarks at an ulema council meeting in Skardu that was held to discuss Pakistan making its blasphemy laws stricter, apparently to target the Shia community.
The Shia and the Sunni share the same basic tenets of Islam, but the Shias do not idolise Islamic figures who opposed the fourth Caliph, Ali.
Pakistan is a Sunni-majority country but Shias form a sizeable chunk of the population in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Starting with Gen Zia-Ul Haq’s regime, successive Pakistan governments have tried to change the demographic composition of Gilgit-Baltistan by moving Sunnis into the region.
Silk Road, the ancient trade route, linking China with the West, that carried goods and ideas between the two civilizations of Rome and China. Silk went westward, and wool, gold, and silver went east. China also received Nestorian Christianity and Buddhism (from Bharat) via the Silk Road.
One of the major routes on the historic Silk Route was passing through the state of Jammu and Kashmir in the Bharatiya sub-continent and Tibetan plateau. It covered the Oasis land route, which had consistent human movement and remained extremely effective as a trade route.
During the glorious days of thriving trade on the Silk Route, Gurez in Bandipore North of Kashmir and around 129 km from Srinagar, was Kashmir’s gateway to the Silk Route.
Historically, Gurez was part of ancient Dardistan, stretching between Sharada Peeth in the west, Minimarg in the north, Drass in the east, and Bagtore in the south. The valley falls along the ancient Silk Route, which connected the Kashmir Valley with Gilgit, before continuing further to Kashgar.
During this economically flourishing era, Bharat had 28 % of the world’s GDP and was considered a prosperous economic power. This area was a trade meeting point for West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia and East Asia.
Gurez is situated at 146 km away from Gilgit. Gilgit is around 1000 km from Iran and at an equal distance from the Bharatiya capital, New Delhi.
Gilgit is an extremely significant mid-way destination, connecting many regions of Asia and Europe, by land. Hence,
as we have seen earlier, the state of Jammu – Kashmir was highly crucial for Britain to maintain economic supremacy even after handing over independence to Bharat. They put in every effort to keep Jammu-Kashmir with Pakistan but Maharaja chose accession with Bharat.
The illegal occupation of Gilgit-Baltistan has caused a huge loss to Bharat’s land route to central Asia, China, West Asia, Africa and Europe.
Economical growth is not the only sector, where Gilgit-Baltistan have significance. On the defence front, this region holds utmost importance as most of the invasions to Bharat, have happened through the Khyber Ghat (valley), bordering Afghanistan.
In Asia, the regions of Gilgit-Baltistan and Tibet practically control most of the freshwater supply. Now, as Tibet has fallen to China, Gilgit-Baltistan is the only other alternative available, as the major water source.
Out of the ten tallest peaks, situated in Bharat, eight lie in Gilgit-Baltistan. Unfortunately, now they are under the control of Pakistan. The world’s second tallest peak, the famous K2 Himalayan peaks is in Baltistan.
Gilgit has some of the world’s largest Gold deposits. China has acquired the mining rights for it.
The Turkmenistan – Afghanistan – Pakistan – India (Bharat) – TAPI project Gas pipeline (also known as the Trans Afghanistan pipeline project) is a mega project to transport natural gas from the Galykynsh gas field in Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and finally to Bharat, in Fazilka, near the border between Bharat and Pakistan. This ambitious project has been halted due to the denial mode of Pakistan.
Sources of Information :
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नरेन्द्र सहगल
कश्मीर : दहकते अंगारे
जगमोहन जी
जम्मू कश्मीर की अनकही कहानियां
कुलदीप चंद अग्निहोत्री
Kashmir : Behind The Vale
M J Akbar
My Frozen Turbulence in Kashmir
Jagmohan ji
100 Documents
Kul Bhushan Mohtra
Jammu-Kashmir : Facts, Problems and Solutions
Ashutosh
http//tribune.com.pk/story/423357/part-of-gilgit-baltistan-shut-down-toprotest-shia-killings/
Madhvi Bhuta is the National Executive of BJP Mahila Morcha and a Columnist on various Forums.
