2. India AND Pakistan
India and Pakistan have been at loggerheads
since the very formation of the two nations;
post British Rule, which ended in 1947. These
conflicts started with the insinuation of Indian
being entitled to the state of Jammu and Kashmir,
despite the large Muslim populace it held.
Ever since, this issue remains the foundation of
most of the conflicts between the nations. Below,
we take you through the past 60 years of history
and elucidate the top 10 reasons behind the
Indo-Pak conflict. Read on!
3. 1. Partition and Division:
At the time of independence, the two countries
were formed on the basis that India would be
dominated by Hindus and Pakistan by Muslims.
But, in the wake of shifting from nation to another,
many Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs were
displaced. Millions were killed because
they found themselves at the wrong side, and
million others were left alone without family
and friends. This partition and division of borders
is the biggest reason behind the Indo-Pak
conflict.
4. 2. Disputed province of Jammu and
Kashmir:
The population mix of the state of Jammu and
Kashmir has always been a mix of
many ethnicities, like Hindus, Muslims, Ladakhy
Bhuddhists and others. And, even today a large
chunk is that of Muslims. This was the reason
why Pakistan wanted to absorb the state in their
part of the territory during partition, while India got
it because it was being ruled by a Hindu
Maharaja and so the reigns were handed to India.
The conflict of who actually deserves to keep
Kashmir has never been settled upon.
5. 3. War of 1947-48:
Right after independence, the first war
between India and Pakistan was fought, when
Pakistan supported Muslim insurgency into the
state of Jammu and Kashmir and in return,
Indian offered the Maharaja armed assistance in
return accession.
6. 4. War of 1965:
After the first war ended in 1949 with the
establishment of a ceasefire, but it was in 1965
when another war broke out to when Pakistan
launched a deliberate covert offensive across
the border, in the Rann of Kutch area on the
south western border.
7. 5. War of 1971:
During this time, there existed an East Pakistan,
also known as Bangladesh. Pakistan
descended into civil war and Indian came to the
help and rescue of millions of civilians, who had
fled the territory. This finally lead to the creation
of a new and independent Bangladesh.
8. 6. Kashmir Revolution:
It was during 1989 when armed resistance broke
out in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Separate
groups were formed. While some asked for
independence, others demanded to merge
Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan.
9. 7. Nuclear threat:
It was first in the year 1974 when India conducted
its first peaceful nuclear explosion. Then in 1998,
India tested its first nuclear weapons and
simultaneously in a few days later, Pakistan
too conducted six successful tests. This
generated a great amount of international
concern over the nuclear status of the two enemy
countries.
10. 8. Nuclear rivalry:
So after successfully conducting nuclear tests,
by 1998 both countries possessed the power
for massive destruction in case of a war. This
alerted the international community and America
as well as European nations ordered sanctions
against the two nations. Ultimately, they both
had to sign an accord to assure them early
resolving of the Kashmir issue.
11. 9. War of Kargil:
Come 1999 and the Pakistani backed forces
infiltrated the Indian Territory. In retaliation India
launched their first air strikes against Pakistan.
Many people of both sides of the border fled their
homes and finally, it was later during that year
when General Pervez Musharraf also led
a military coup in Pakistan.
12. 10. At the brink of another War:
After the war of Kargil, tension never seemed to
leave the region along the ceasefire line. It was
during October, 2001 when 38 people were killed
in the Kashmir assembly, followed by an attack in
the Indian Parliament House, which killed 14
people. India blamed Pakistani backed militants
for this distraught.