Whither Kashmir?

It is interesting to read M.J. Akbar’s column to realize that “Pakistan pre-empted a peaceful settlement in 1948 by organizing an invasion thinly disguised as an “uprising”, in October 1947″.

This was because “A little after Partition [in August 1947], Nehru wrote to Mountbatten that the best time for discussions on the future of Kashmir would be after the spring thaw of 1948 since his government was overburdened by the bitter aftermath of riots and resettlement.”

“If Pakistan had not sought to seize Kashmir through war, the Kashmir problem would have been resolved across a table in 1948”, says Mr. Akbar. He concludes that “The war that Pakistan began is a recipe for disaster; the negotiations that Nehru and Mountbatten wanted are still the only option”.