This post is not intended to spread hate or target any community. Just a mere reflection of history, facts and some events that I think should be discussed more openly.
I was going to ignore the topic of the ongoing war, but after reading some posts on Hive with some blatant lies, I have to say that I can't keep quiet.
This post is going to be quite political, it might hurt sentiments of the opposing view, but some things have to be said. I am sure you heard about the recent conflict between India and Pakistan. Let me try to tell you how and why it started.
The Roots of the Conflict: 1947 and the Partition
We have to go a long way back to 1947. This was the year when pre-independent India gained independence.
Based on the 1941 census:
- 70% of the then population was Hindu (255 million)
- 24% were Muslims (88 million)
- 2.3% Christians
and some other minorities like Sikhs (around 2%), Buddhists, Jains, etc.
It was a fairly diverse country. The Muslim League, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, had fears that the Muslims would not get their equal treatment in a Hindu-dominated country, so they demanded a separate nation. Hence, Pakistan was created for all Muslims who wanted to go and live separately from the rest of India.
But India had a lot of smaller Princely states as well, ruled by separate local rulers under the British flag. There were 565 princely states, each were given the option to join India, Pakistan, or remain independent.
Jammu & Kashmir attacked by Pakistan
Jammu & Kashmir decided to remain independent, along with a couple more states (those don't matter to the story anymore).
Just after two months of independence, tribal militias supported by the Pakistan army attacked Kashmir in October 1947 in hopes of capturing the capital, Srinagar, to merge Kashmir with Pakistan.
Pakistan had a much bigger force compared to Kashmir, so the Maharaja asked India's help. India helped on the condition that Kashmir should join India; otherwise we wouldn't be sending the army to fight. The Maharaja signed the Instrument of Accession on 26th October, 1947, officially making Kashmir part of India.
Illegal occupation of J&K by Pakistan
But Pakistani troops had already forcefully captured major parts of Kashmir, Indian forces pushed them back a bit, but it led to a long, drawn-out war, which ended in 1949 with a UN-mediated ceasefire.
Legally and officially Jammu and Kashmir became part of India, like many other princely states who all signed the same instrument of Accession. There is an official document for god's sake.
But this is where the biggest blunder came from India. The first prime minister of India was under tremendous global pressure, had to go to the UN, and declare a ceasefire. (One of the worst decisions in my opinion)
These were the terms that were agreed upon:
- Withdrawal of Pakistani forces from Kashmir.
- Reduction of Indian forces in Kashmir.
- A plebiscite (vote) to let the people decide.
And keep in mind that these three conditions had to be done in the above sequence. But Pakistan never withdrew their forces and still occupies that territory illegally. So, it never got resolved.
From that day, Pakistan wanted to capture the rest of Kashmir and fought 3 major wars, each started by the Pakistani side.
I used the help of ChatGPT to give you an overall overview of those Wars.
The Wars Pakistan Started
Q: How many wars were fought between India and Pakistan, and who started them?
India and Pakistan have fought four major wars since their independence in 1947. Here's an overview of each war and who initiated it:
First Indo-Pakistani War (1947-1948)
Who started it?
Pakistan-backed tribal militias invaded the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir in October 1947 to forcibly annex it.
Outcome: India intervened after the state's ruler signed the Instrument of Accession, and the war ended with a UN-mediated ceasefire in 1949, leading to the establishment of the Line of Control (LoC).
Second Indo-Pakistani War (1965)
Who started it? Pakistan launched Operation Gibraltar in August 1965, sending troops and infiltrators into Kashmir to incite an uprising.
Outcome: India responded with a counteroffensive, leading to full-scale war. The war ended with a stalemate and the signing of the Tashkent Agreement in January 1966.
Third Indo-Pakistani War (1971)
Who started it? India intervened in East Pakistan's (now Bangladesh) liberation war after Pakistan's military crackdown on the Bengali population.
Outcome: India decisively won, leading to the creation of Bangladesh. Over 90,000 Pakistani soldiers surrendered, marking one of the biggest military surrenders in history.
Kargil War (1999)
Who started it? Pakistan-backed forces and soldiers, disguised as militants, infiltrated Indian positions in Kargil (Jammu and Kashmir) in early 1999.
Outcome: India launched Operation Vijay, successfully recapturing lost territory. The war ended after Pakistan withdrew under international pressure, particularly from the U.S.
*Apart from these wars, there have been numerous border skirmishes, military standoffs, and conflicts such as the 2001 Indian Parliament attack, the 2016 Uri attack, and the 2019 Pulwama-Balakot air strikes. *
Not only these Wars, but there have been countless Terrorist attacks in Kashmir and parts of India whose links are connected to Pakistan. One of the most prominent ones is one of the terrorists captured in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. He was a resident of Pakistan's Punjab province and affiliated with the same terrorist organisation whose headquarters were struck in this recent strike by India.
There have been numerous other attacks from the Pakistani-linked terrorists, like the 1993 Mumbai Bomb Blast, 2001 Indian Parliament attacks, 2016 Uri Attack, and 2019 Pulwama Attack, all of them involving Pakistani-based terrorists and terrorist organisations. The leaders of some of those organisations who conducted those terrorist attacks are openly living in Pakistan. Some of them are even celebrities.
State Sponsoring and Glorifying Terrorism
Osama Bin Laden is a Martyr!?
Pakistani Prime Ministers respect these terrorists a lot. Just a few years ago, Imran Khan, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, called Osama Bin Laden a 'Martyr' on the floor of Parliament. Source- BBC
In a country where the most famous terrorist is a martyr, would they even consider some lowly terrorist anything other than their valuable citizens?
And keep in mind that Osama bin Laden was hiding in a compound just under a mile away from a Pakistani Military Academy, which is one of the major military training institutes in the country, and you are saying they had no clue about him?
State Funeral to Terrorists
Pakistan's establishment gave a State Funeral to the 'martyred' terrorist in the recent strike. With a known US-designated global terrorist performing the funeral with the Pakistani army. Can this get even worse?
https://x.com/TahaSSiddiqui/status/1920084938738590029
Supporting terrorists for 3 decades - Pakistan's Defence Minister
Reporter: You do admit, sir, that Pakistan has had a long history of backing and supporting and training and funding these terrorist organisations?
Pakistan's Defence Minister: Well, we have been doing this dirty work for the United States for about 3 decades and the West, including Britain.
Reporter: So... that's your argument?
Trained Militants to Fight Kashmir - Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf
Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf has told a magazine that his forces trained militant groups to fight in Indian-administered Kashmir.Source - BBC
Should I say more? An army trains a militant group to send them to their neighbouring country to increase tensions and conduct terrorist attacks in hopes of capturing Kashmir.
I have lot of other examples but I won't elaborate further. I just wanted to speak my mind here.
War is Bad, but Terrorism is Worse
We all know War is bad, but Terrorism is even Worse. Supporting terrorism is equally bad, in my opinion. India launched a series of strikes on the bases and headquarters of the known terrorist group. This was in response to the terrorist attacks that killed 26 tourists in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan retaliated and tried to attack the military targets and civilians. You can see the detailed reports of these strikes in this press briefing, where they talked about the entire anti-terrorist operation with satellite images and videos.
India did not start this conflict, nor the ones in 1947, 1965, or 1999. Yes, war is quite bad, but terrorism is even worse in my books. When a nation grooms those terrorists, trains them, gives them weapons and harbours them. That doesn't sit well with me.
It was necessary to speak out. Peace is possible only when there is no terrorism. Let's try to say no to all forms of terrorism.
Do let me know your thoughts about the post in the comments below.