A brief history of Kashmir

August 15-October 26, 1947. Jammu and Kashmir still a sovereign state.

August 12, 1947: Kashmir’s ruler Maharaja Hari Singh offers a Standstill Agreement, proposing a hands-off policy by India and Pakistan on Kashmir. Accepted by both countries.

October 24, 1947: Tribals from Pakistan invade Kashmir. Responding to Hari Singh’s request, the Army’s 1st Sikh Regiment lands at Srinagar on October 27. Some Kashmiri elders still refer to all Armymen as ‘‘Sikhs’’.

October 26, 1947: Maharaja Hari Singh signs the Instrument of Accession with India.

January 1, 1949: Ceasefire declared between India and Pakistan.

January 5, 1949: UN passes a resolution for holding plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir. Asks Pakistan to vacate Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

October 17, 1949: Article 370 adopted, confers special status on J&K in the Constitution.

October 1951: Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah of the National Conference elected unopposed as Prime Minister in a 75-member Assembly.

July 24, 1952: Nehru announces special position for J&K under Delhi Agreement between India and J&K.

August 7, 1952: Nehru declares in Parliament that ‘‘the people of Kashmir are sovereign’’ when the agreement was discussed.

August 9, 1953: Sheikh Abdullah arrested at Gulmarg, charged with conspiracy against the State.

June 22, 1953: Jana Sangh founder Dr Shyama Prasad Mookherjee dies in custody in Srinagar. Mookherjee was arrested after he violated the permit system for entry into J&K. He was accompanied by his then secretary, Atal Behari Vajpayee.

October 20, 1962: China attacks Ladakh, occupies around 15,000 sq miles before declaring a ceasefire in November.

May 1964: Sheikh Abdullah sent to Pakistan where he meets Ayub Khan. But the parleys are cut short following Jawaharlal Nehru’s death.

March 30, 1965: State Constitution amended; Sadar-e-Reyasat and Prime Minister now known as Governor and Chief Minister.
August 1965: War breaks out between India and Pakistan.

January 11, 1966: Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri signs Tashkent Agreement with Pakistani Prime Minister Ayub Khan. Shastri dies in Tashkent itself immediately after.

January 8, 1971: Sheikh Abdullah and his colleagues externed from the state. That month, J&K police smash Alsafa, a militant group formed in 1970.

December 1971: Second Indo-Pak war, Bangladesh is born. Assembly elections declared in early 1972, Jamat-e-Islami contests for the first time. Sheikh Abdullah waters down his stand on plebiscite.

July 2, 1972: Simla Agreement signed, Ceasefire Line converted into Line of Control (LoC).

November 3, 1974: Sheikh Abdullah inks an agreement with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In February 1975, he takes over as Chief Minister, replacing Syed Mir Qasim. Dissolves Plebiscite Front on July 5, 1975.

Plebiscite plea revived in the early eighties. Maqbool Bhat’s Liberation Front launches an underground anti-India campaign. Violence as a means to an end makes its debut in Kashmir.

February 11, 1984: Maqbool Bhat hanged in Tihar Jail on charges of murder and conspiracy.

August 1, 1988: Two blasts take place at Central Telegraph Office and Srinagar Club.

September 18, 1988: AK assault rifles used for the first ever time when militants storm residence of then DIG of Kashmir, A M Watali. Officials says between 1988-2000, 35,000 have been killed. Groups like Hurriyat claim 80,000 casualties.

February 21, 1999: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee signs Lahore Declaration with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

May 5, 1999: First Pakistani troops spotted on Batalik Heights by two shepherds.

May 6, 1999: Army patrol send to flush out troops, doesn’t return.

May 26, 1999: Indian Army launches Operation Vijay.

July 26: 1999: Kargil war is officially over.

November 26, 2000: Prime Minister Vajpayee declares a unilateral ceasefire, extended thrice.

May 21, 2001: Centre calls off ceasefire, invites General Musharraf for talks.

(COMPILED BY NAZIR MASOODI)