Srinagar: At the end of British suzerainty over the Indian subcontinent in 1947, more than 550 princely states became independent, with the choice to accede either to Pakistan or India based on geographical contiguity and the will of their people.
According to Kashmir Media Service, except for a few, the princely states joined Pakistan or India without dispute. However, India also illegally annexed Hyderabad and Junagadh through political manipulation and the use of force. In the case of the Muslim-majority princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, the people wanted to accede to Pakistan, but the sinister designs of its Hindu ruler, Maharaja Hari Singh, and Indian National Congress leaders, backed by the British, shattered their aspirations. On October 27, 1947, India landed its troops at Srinagar airport and began the military occupation of the state in violation of the principles of partition.
From the very first day, the people of Jammu and Kashmir rejected India’s illegal occupation and launched an exemplary struggle, which between 1947 and 1949 succeeded in liberating a vast area now known as Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
