For over seven decades, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have endured repression under Indian occupation while persistently demanding their UN-recognised right to self-determination. The events of October 27, 1947, when India unlawfully landed its troops in Kashmir, marked the beginning of an occupation and a continuing violation of international law and the UN Charter.

India’s claim of accession based on the so-called Instrument of Accession was never validated through a transparent or democratic process. It remains disputed in fact and law, as the document was allegedly signed under duress and never ratified by the Kashmiri people or the UN. The ensuing decades have been marked by military occupation, demographic manipulation and systematic denial of freedoms, yet the resilience of the Kashmiri people continues.

Even Jawaharlal Nehru repeatedly affirmed in 1947-48 that the people of Kashmir must decide their future through a plebiscite – a commitment enshrined in UN Security Council Resolution 47 (1948) and reaffirmed in later resolutions. Despite early pledges before the international community, India gradually reversed its position. From the 1950s onward, it embarked on a campaign to unilaterally integrate Occupied Kashmir,........

© The News International