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Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts

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Since Indian independence in August 1947 and the creation of the Republic of India and Pakistan, there have been three major wars and one minor war between the two states, the casus belli in each case being the disputed Kashmir region, with the only exception of the war of 1971, where the dispute concerned East Pakistan.

The Wars in chronological order

  • Indo-Pakistani War of 1947: Pakistan captures one third of Kashmir (which Pakistan claims as its territory) with the help of Pashtun tribals. Hindus and Sikhs are annihilated from Pakistani Kashmir. India retains three fifths of Kashmir by sending troops through Gurdaspur.
  • Indo-Pakistani War of 1965: Pakistani troops attempt to infiltrate into Indian Kashmir hoping for an uprising by Kashmiris. The plan backfires as Kashmiris arrest the infiltrators instead. In desperation, Pakistan opens other fronts. India retalitates on multiple western fronts in response. War results in strategic stalemate with both countries holding on each other's territories (India held 710 sq. mi, Pakistan held 210 sq. mi).
  • Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: Bangladesh demands independence from Pakistan. Pakistani army conducts mass killings and rapes in Bangladesh and Genocide of Bengali civilians, especially Hindus. Millions of refugees pour over into India. India joins Bangladeshi Mukti-Bahini and decisively defeats Pakistan resulting in the independence of Bangladesh and complete surrender by Pakistan.
  • Indo-Pakistani War of 1999, also known as "Kargil War": Pakistani troops and some Kashmiri insurgents capture Indian army posts. Indian Army retaliates and recaptures the posts. International pressure forces Pakistan to back down. The war ends with India regaining possession of Kargil and diplomatic isolation of Pakistan.

Origins of conflict

The root of most conflicts and the mutual antipathy lies in the Hindu-Muslim divide that led to the partition of India in 1947 and the creation of Pakistan. The partition was an ill-conceived idea, since many Muslim majority areas remained within India and could not possibly be united into a common geographic area. The political leaders of the newly created state of Pakistan nursed a hatred for India and propagated their feelings among their masses.In fact, in Pakistani schools, their history books begin with the independence of Pakistan and ignore the past history of the Indian subcontinent of which they are a part. Dispute over the mountainous region of Kashmir and in the manner in which its political alignment was decided by the two countries following partition in 1947. Kashmir was ruled by Maharaja Hari Singh, a Hindu, but following an invasion by Pakistani tribals he ceded his territory to India, though Pakistan argues that he did so under duress. This resulted in the breaking out of the First Kashmir War between Indian and Pakistani troops. The war lasted for more than a year with both nations making significant advances into each others territory. When the war was ended by a UN ceasefire, India had managed to secure just under three-fifths of Kashmir and importantly the most fertile part of it including the Kashmir Valley.

The Second Kashmir War began with Pakistan infiltrating into and starting a rebellion in Jammu and Kashmir. (See Operation Gibraltar) The plan was a non-starter and India retaliated by launching an attack on Pakistan thus igniting the war.

The third war was unique in that it did not involve the issue of Kashmir, but was rather precipitated by the crisis brewing in East Pakistan. After months of internal conflict, India decided to help the Bengalis in East Pakistan - much to the consternation of West Pakistan. Within just a fortnight the Indian Military had defeated Pakistan with the aid of the rebels and forced Pakistan to surrender. This war, despite lasting only a fortnight, saw the highest number of casualties in any of the India-Pakistan conflicts, as well as the largest number of Prisoners of War since the Second World War after the surrender of nearly 100,000 Pakistani troops and civilians. It is believed that 1,000,000-3,000,000 Bangladeshis were killed as a result of this war.

The latest war, the Kargil War, is considered a minor war because fighting was limited to a single front in Kashmir; though it produced stirring emotions between the two nations involved, coming at a time of increased media and electronic coverage. This was the first ground war between the two countries after they had developed nuclear weapons.

Other conflicts

Apart from the aforementioned wars, there have been skirmishes between the two nations from time to time. Some have bordered on all-out war, while others were limited in scope. The countries were expected to fight each other in 1955 after warlike posturing on both sides, but full-scale war did not break out. In 1984 there was a flashpoint as both nations attempted to control the Siachen Glacier. Further clashes erupted in the glacial area in 1985, 1987 and 1995 as Pakistan sought without success to oust India from their stronghold.

Between November 1986 and March 1987, India conducted Operation Brasstacks. This military exercise - the largest of its kind in South Asia - raised eyebrows in Pakistan and it was feared that it would lead to another war between the two neighbours. Tensions were high again in 1990 after militancy in Indian-administered Kashmir greatly increased. A terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001, blamed by India on the Pakistan-based terrorist organizations Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, prompted the 2001-2002 India-Pakistan standoff and brought both sides close to war.

Until the ceasefire the LOC was also spectator to daily artillery exchange between Indian and Pakistani armies.

See also

Dramatization

Films

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