1947 Muslim massacre in Jammu

[DESERT FIGHTER]

Today is 6th November, the day we commemorate in memory of victims of Jammu massacre 1947 , many of whom even didn’t know their fault to go to grave. A people which had faithfully obeyed & served the whole clan of Hindu Dogra rulers for almost a century, fell to the evil plans & contrived machinations of the same very rulers. But before the veil is pierced to look at these tyrannical faces , it is appropriate and in order to recall an instance of a nearby State, Chamba (Now in Himachal Pradesh) to dispel the notion that all Hindu rules were cruel or tyrants.

Upon partition of India, some three thousand Muslims of Chamba desired to migrate to Pakistan in the beginning of October 1947. Since the shortest rout to their new destination fell through J&K, Their ruler, Mahraja Laxaman Singh, personally accompanied them upto to Kashmir Border in Bhaderwah district. On way he publicly warned all marauders & RSS cadres to lay off, as being his subjects , it was his responsibility to ensure that they did not come to any harm in his territory. The brave ruler personally bade them good bye at the border. But what happened to them, thereafter in our state is another story to be told a little later?

A question then naturally arises, as to what overriding reasons or factors prompted & motivated Dogra ruler Hari Singh to mercilessly kill or cause to be killed his own faithful subjects contrary to golden principles of ‘Raj Dharma’, to which he was supposed to have adhered to. All archival material, recorded evidences & statement of eye-witnesses clearly establish beyond any doubt that massacre of Muslims in Jammu in 1947 was a planned State affair. The Dogra ruler, having decided to accede to India much before the actual partition of sub-continent took place in August 1947 was, however circumspect because his State was a 80% Muslim Majority State. Muslims of Jammu, having more social & cultural affinity with Punjabi Muslims, were eager to Join Pakistan as against the Valley Muslims politically ruled by Sheikh Abdullah who, admittedly was not favorably disposed towards Pakistan. It was therefore, militarily logical & politically feasible that the demographics of Jammu be changed to facilitate the entry of Indian army into the State without much resistance and to make the political rule that much easier.

And in this macabre game of bloodbath, Hari Singh received logistical support from two Maharajas of nearby states M/s Yadavindra Singh & Jagjit Singh Bhadur of Patiala & Kapurthala respectively, at the instance of Union Home Minster Sardar Patel & Defence Minster Baldev Singh who enjoyed strong rapport & friendly relations with these two Mahrajas. Psychological support was provided by Golwalker & other RSS functionaries like B.R.Agrekar, provincial President RSS. The administration consisting of Prime Minster Mehr Chand Mahajan & Governor Jammu Chet Ram Chopra got the plan executed with military precision through Dogra Army, Patiala forces & RSS cadres from Jammu & neighboring areas. That the middle & lower rung officials of the administration were fully involved in the pogrom is established by following instances.

For Jammu, Samba & Kathua-Prem Nath Dogra-Retired SDM was the organizer of training camps for RSS cadres. Bulk arms were stores & distributed from his house at Kach Chawni and armed training Camps were organized at Vaid Mandir, Raghunath Mandir, Talab Rani, & Gurdwara Pacci Dhaki.
In Udhampur, Dev Raj Dogra, Tehsildar, Lachman Dass Ex-SP and Chaman Lal, S.I were the organizers of RSS training
In Ram Nagar, Chander Ubay Singh-Tehsildar & Darshan Singh-S.I were incharge of training camps.
In Padder Bodh Raj Bali-SI & Kali Dass Zaildar were the organisers.
At Reasi & Katra- Dina Nath-Ranger, Shambu Nath son of Ganga Ram Minster, Goverdhan Singh-Waziri Wazarat, Jia Lal Darbari ASP and Manohar Lal SI were in charge to execute the pogrom.
In Jammu, the Hindu doctors at Govt. Hospital were directed not to provide any medical aid to injured Muslims. Barring one noble exception of a kind hearted Doctor, Partap Singh, all the doctors fell to palace diktats in brazen violation of their professional ethics. In this scene reminiscent of Karbala, Two Muslim doctors of Jammu Dr. Abdul Karim & Dr. Rehmutullah set up a Hospital in the Haveli of Sardar Mohd. Akram Khan at talab Khatikhan. Dressing & antiseptic material was supplied surreptitiously by Dr. Partap Singh through a Harijan Sweeper. Water was boiled in big cooking pots. Ordinary soft cloth was cut into small pieces to be used dressing pads. Turbans & Dopattas were cut lengthwise to act as bandages.
And finally the fate of 3000 Muslims of Chamba, whose mention I have made earlier. Once in the State of J&K , Governor Chet Ram chopra issued orders from Jammu requiring them to proceed immediately towards Pakistan . Instead of providing them a passage through a safer route , these refugees were directed to move Via Bani (Kathua). Muslims of Bhaderwah made franatic efforts through S.P Udhampur, Sheikh Mohd. Saleem, to stop their migration till such time, the carnage stops in Jammu but all in vain. It was a devious plot crafted by Chopra to get all these defenseless persons killed through the rampaging mobs of marauders & RSS Goons .And true to his plot, none among these 3000 persons reached his/her new destination. SP Udhampur, Sheikh Mohd. Saleem was soon replaced by a communal officer, Sant Pindi Dass for resisting the orders from Chopra.

A question which baffles every student of history is the inertia & non-action by Abdullah ,who soon became prime Minster of the state with unbridled powers, to take action against the planners & organizers of this holocaust . Instead, his administration promoted many involved officials, to higher positions in a routine way, as if nothing had happened. Does it point to his passive complicity in the pogrom or a general amnesty to the killers to ensure a smooth political & administrative sailing? Whatever be the case, the non-action against the killers created and institutionalized a culture of impunity in the state which continues to be enjoyed by its various arms uninterrupted till date.
@Irfan Baloch @Zibago

 

[Kabira]

600,000 killed? Doesn't Jammu have small population even now?

 

[Akhill]

Who speaks about millions of hindus killed during sametime ? Infact hindus were much more generous compared to muslims and still allowed so many to live back in india. I dont know what OP wants to point out by this article.

 

[unbiasedopinion]

misleading headling.. article talks about 3000 where as headline says 600000. Also Jammu does not have this much population even now, how come it was at that time?

 

[Akhill]

Article full of flaws.. seems to be written by someone well raised by bias rather than objective and no source, as always

 

[Valkyrie]

The killing fields of Jammu: How Muslims become a minority in the region
Official records have tried their utmost to suppress the details of a Muslim massacre.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
Saeed Naqvi

What was the death toll in the killing fields of Jammu? There are no official figures, so one has to go by reports in the British press of that period. Horace Alexander’s article on 16 January 1948 in The Spectator is much quoted; he put the number killed at 200,000.

To quote a 10 August 1948 report published in The Times, London: “2,37,000 Muslims were systematically exterminated – unless they escaped to Pakistan along the border – by the forces of the Dogra State headed by the Maharaja in person and aided by Hindus and Sikhs. This happened in October 1947, five days before the Pathan invasion and nine days before the Maharaja’s accession to india.” Reportedly, as a result of the massacre/migration, Muslims who were a majority (61 per cent) in the Jammu region became a minority.

Mountbatten was in control in Delhi and had news of the genocide of Muslims in Jammu filtered out of the media. Sadly, there has been precious little discussion in India about this horrible phase of history.
Maharaja Hari Singh’s involvement, with the support of the RSS, is evident from a letter Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to Vallabhbhai Patel on 17 April 1949 (quoted in Frontline magazine):

In this (intelligence) report, among other things, a reference was made to a growing Hindu agitation in Jammu province for what is called a zonal plebiscite. This idea is based on the belief that a plebiscite for the whole of Kashmir is bound to be lost and, therefore, let us save Jammu at least. You will perhaps remember that some proposal of this kind was put forward by the Maharaja some months back. it seems to me that this kind of propaganda is very harmful, indeed, for us. Whatever may happen in the future, I do not think Jammu province is running away from us. If we want Jammu province by itself and are prepared to make a present of the rest of the State to Pakistan, I have no doubt we could clinch the issue in a few days. The prize we are fighting for is the valley of Kashmir. [This is what Nehru had dug in his heels for. The consequences are for all to see to this day.]

This propaganda for a zonal plebiscite is going on in Jammu, in Delhi and elsewhere. It is carried on by what is known as the Jammu Praja Parishad. Our intelligence officer reported that this Praja Parishad is financed by the Maharaja. Further, that the large sums collected for the Dharmarth Fund, which are controlled by the Maharaja, are being spent in propaganda for him.


The lid on these massacres was lifted by Ved Bhasin and a few journalists of that time. But like the collective silence over the pogrom in Hyderabad, the holocaust in Jammu has been a story hidden from public view by the machinations of the very people who covertly allowed the massacres to take place. These included many in the national leadership of the Congress party at the time. The events of Hyderabad and Jammu and Kashmir reveal the emergence in New Delhi of an establishment which was indifferent to Indian Muslims.

Consider the testimony of journalist Ved Bhasin. Here I am again quoting from his paper presented at the Jammu University in 2003.

Communal tension was building up in Jammu soon after the announcement of the Mountbatten plan with the Hindu Sabha, RSS and the Muslim Conference trying to incite communal passions. Tension increased with a large number of Hindus and Sikhs migrating to the State from Punjab and NWFP and even from areas now under Pakistan’s control. Trouble was brewing in Poonch, where a popular non-communal agitation was launched after the Maharaja’s administration took over the erstwhile jagir under its direct control and imposed some taxes. The mishandling of this agitation and use of brutal force by the Maharaja’s administration inflamed the passions, turning this non-communal struggle into a communal strife.

The Maharaja’s administration had not only asked all Muslims to surrender their arms but also demobilised a large number of Muslim soldiers in the Dogra army and the Muslim police officers, whose loyalty it suspected. The Maharaja’s visit to Bhimber was followed by large-scale killings.

Bhasin reports the large-scale killing of Muslims in Udhampur district, particularly in Udhampur proper, Chenani, Ramnagar and Reasi areas. Even in Bhaderwah (about 150 kilometres from Udhampur), a number of Muslims were victims of communal marauders. According to Bhasin, the RSS played a key role in these killings, aided by armed Sikh refugees “who even paraded the Jammu streets with their naked swords”. Some of those who led the riots in Udhampur and Bhaderwah later joined the National Conference and some even served as ministers. There were reports of Muslims massacred in Chhamb, Deva Batala, Manawsar and other parts of Akhnoor, with several of them fleeing to the other side or moving to Jammu. In Kathua district too there was the large-scale killing of Muslims and reports of women being raped and abducted.

As for the attitude of the state, Bhasin alleges that instead of preventing these communal killings and fostering an atmosphere of peace, “the Maharaja’s administration helped and even armed the communal marauders”. He goes on to say that many Muslims living outside Muslim-dominated areas were brutally killed by the rioters who moved freely in vehicles with arms and ammunition even when the city was officially under curfew. “The curfew it appeared was meant only to check the movement of Muslims,” he says.
Terrible carnage took place later when the Muslims in Talab Khatikan area were asked to surrender.

They were shifted to the police lines at Jogi gate, where now Delhi Public School is situated. Instead of providing them security, the administration encouraged them to go to Pakistan for safety. The first batch of several thousands of these Muslims were loaded in about sixty lorries to take them to Sialkot. Unaware of what is going to happen to them these families boarded the buses. The vehicles were escorted by troops. But when they reached near Chattha on Jammu-Sialkot road, in the outskirts of the city, a large number of armed RSS men and Sikh refugees were positioned there.

They were pulled out of the vehicles and killed mercilessly with the soldiers either joining [in] or looking [on] as idle spectators. The news about the massacre was kept a closely guarded secret. next day another batch of these Muslim families were similarly boarded in the vehicles and met the same fate. [T]hose who somehow managed to escape the wrath of killers reached Sialkot to narrate their tale of woe…


The state administration denied it had any role in the massacres. It even feigned ignorance of any plans to change the demography of the Jammu region. But Bhasin differs:

Though polite, he warned me of dire consequences…he first warned me by saying that “I could have put you behind bars for your nefarious activities. But since you also happen to be a Khatri like me and are also related to me, i am simply giving you advice. It is not the time to form peace committees and work for peace but to defend Hindus and Sikhs from the Muslim communalists who are planning to kill them and destabilise the situation. We have already formed a Hindu Sikh Defence Committee. You and your colleagues better support it.” Then he added, “We are imparting armed training to Hindu and Sikh boys in Rehari area. You and your colleagues should better join such training.” When i sent a colleague to the training camp the next day he found that some RSS youths and others were being given training in the use of .303 rifles by soldiers.

Another incident that I recall is about Mr Mehr Chand Mahajan (the then prime minister) who told a delegation of Hindus who met him in the palace when he arrived in Jammu that now when the power is being transferred to the people they should demand parity. [One] of them associated with National Conference asked how can they demand parity when there is so much difference in population ratio. Pointing to the Ramnagarrakh below, where some bodies of Muslims were still lying he said “the population ratio too can change”.

Mahatma Gandhi did comment on the situation in Jammu on 25 December 1947 and his remarks have found mention in volume 90 of his Collected Works: “The Hindus and Sikhs of Jammu and those who had gone there from outside killed Muslims. The Maharaja of Kashmir is responsible for what is happening there…Muslim women have been dishonoured.”

http://scroll.in/bulletins/34/what-you-need-to-know-about-fighting-depression

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

Who speaks about millions of hindus killed during sametime ? Infact hindus were much more generous compared to muslims and still allowed so many to live back in india. I dont know what OP wants to point out by this article.

millions of hindus by whom?

Kashmiris faced genocide in 47... and its still continuing..

 

[Kaniska]

View attachment 349897

Today is 6th November, the day we commemorate in memory of victims of Jammu massacre 1947 , many of whom even didn’t know their fault to go to grave. A people which had faithfully obeyed & served the whole clan of Hindu Dogra rulers for almost a century, fell to the evil plans & contrived machinations of the same very rulers. But before the veil is pierced to look at these tyrannical faces , it is appropriate and in order to recall an instance of a nearby State, Chamba (Now in Himachal Pradesh) to dispel the notion that all Hindu rules were cruel or tyrants.

Upon partition of India, some three thousand Muslims of Chamba desired to migrate to Pakistan in the beginning of October 1947. Since the shortest rout to their new destination fell through J&K, Their ruler, Mahraja Laxaman Singh, personally accompanied them upto to Kashmir Border in Bhaderwah district. On way he publicly warned all marauders & RSS cadres to lay off, as being his subjects , it was his responsibility to ensure that they did not come to any harm in his territory. The brave ruler personally bade them good bye at the border. But what happened to them, thereafter in our state is another story to be told a little later?

A question then naturally arises, as to what overriding reasons or factors prompted & motivated Dogra ruler Hari Singh to mercilessly kill or cause to be killed his own faithful subjects contrary to golden principles of ‘Raj Dharma’, to which he was supposed to have adhered to. All archival material, recorded evidences & statement of eye-witnesses clearly establish beyond any doubt that massacre of Muslims in Jammu in 1947 was a planned State affair. The Dogra ruler, having decided to accede to India much before the actual partition of sub-continent took place in August 1947 was, however circumspect because his State was a 80% Muslim Majority State. Muslims of Jammu, having more social & cultural affinity with Punjabi Muslims, were eager to Join Pakistan as against the Valley Muslims politically ruled by Sheikh Abdullah who, admittedly was not favorably disposed towards Pakistan. It was therefore, militarily logical & politically feasible that the demographics of Jammu be changed to facilitate the entry of Indian army into the State without much resistance and to make the political rule that much easier.

And in this macabre game of bloodbath, Hari Singh received logistical support from two Maharajas of nearby states M/s Yadavindra Singh & Jagjit Singh Bhadur of Patiala & Kapurthala respectively, at the instance of Union Home Minster Sardar Patel & Defence Minster Baldev Singh who enjoyed strong rapport & friendly relations with these two Mahrajas. Psychological support was provided by Golwalker & other RSS functionaries like B.R.Agrekar, provincial President RSS. The administration consisting of Prime Minster Mehr Chand Mahajan & Governor Jammu Chet Ram Chopra got the plan executed with military precision through Dogra Army, Patiala forces & RSS cadres from Jammu & neighboring areas. That the middle & lower rung officials of the administration were fully involved in the pogrom is established by following instances.

For Jammu, Samba & Kathua-Prem Nath Dogra-Retired SDM was the organizer of training camps for RSS cadres. Bulk arms were stores & distributed from his house at Kach Chawni and armed training Camps were organized at Vaid Mandir, Raghunath Mandir, Talab Rani, & Gurdwara Pacci Dhaki.
In Udhampur, Dev Raj Dogra, Tehsildar, Lachman Dass Ex-SP and Chaman Lal, S.I were the organizers of RSS training
In Ram Nagar, Chander Ubay Singh-Tehsildar & Darshan Singh-S.I were incharge of training camps.
In Padder Bodh Raj Bali-SI & Kali Dass Zaildar were the organisers.
At Reasi & Katra- Dina Nath-Ranger, Shambu Nath son of Ganga Ram Minster, Goverdhan Singh-Waziri Wazarat, Jia Lal Darbari ASP and Manohar Lal SI were in charge to execute the pogrom.
In Jammu, the Hindu doctors at Govt. Hospital were directed not to provide any medical aid to injured Muslims. Barring one noble exception of a kind hearted Doctor, Partap Singh, all the doctors fell to palace diktats in brazen violation of their professional ethics. In this scene reminiscent of Karbala, Two Muslim doctors of Jammu Dr. Abdul Karim & Dr. Rehmutullah set up a Hospital in the Haveli of Sardar Mohd. Akram Khan at talab Khatikhan. Dressing & antiseptic material was supplied surreptitiously by Dr. Partap Singh through a Harijan Sweeper. Water was boiled in big cooking pots. Ordinary soft cloth was cut into small pieces to be used dressing pads. Turbans & Dopattas were cut lengthwise to act as bandages.
And finally the fate of 3000 Muslims of Chamba, whose mention I have made earlier. Once in the State of J&K , Governor Chet Ram chopra issued orders from Jammu requiring them to proceed immediately towards Pakistan . Instead of providing them a passage through a safer route , these refugees were directed to move Via Bani (Kathua). Muslims of Bhaderwah made franatic efforts through S.P Udhampur, Sheikh Mohd. Saleem, to stop their migration till such time, the carnage stops in Jammu but all in vain. It was a devious plot crafted by Chopra to get all these defenseless persons killed through the rampaging mobs of marauders & RSS Goons .And true to his plot, none among these 3000 persons reached his/her new destination. SP Udhampur, Sheikh Mohd. Saleem was soon replaced by a communal officer, Sant Pindi Dass for resisting the orders from Chopra.

A question which baffles every student of history is the inertia & non-action by Abdullah ,who soon became prime Minster of the state with unbridled powers, to take action against the planners & organizers of this holocaust . Instead, his administration promoted many involved officials, to higher positions in a routine way, as if nothing had happened. Does it point to his passive complicity in the pogrom or a general amnesty to the killers to ensure a smooth political & administrative sailing? Whatever be the case, the non-action against the killers created and institutionalized a culture of impunity in the state which continues to be enjoyed by its various arms uninterrupted till date.
@Irfan Baloch @Zibago

What a misleading or propaganda article man?? Even the population of Jammu would not be 600000 at that point of time...

 

[Burhan Wani]

It was the specialty of Hindus to kill and mutilate unarmed people, women and children. They killed Muslims as well as Sikhs to remain in power. It was the efforts of 40,000 ex Sudhans who were the veteran of WW1&2 under British army, we liberated by revolt and made Azad riasat J&K independent from Maharaja Hari Singh in year 1947. Parallel to us under guidance of Sardar Ibrahim Khan first president of AJK, Col Mirza Hassan Jarral revolted against Dogra local administration of GB and liberated their home land.
https://defence.pk/threads/gilgit-b...-celebrated-in-london-uk.459767/#post-8887053
https://defence.pk/threads/martyrdom-anniversary-captain-hussain-khan-shaheed-11th-nov-1947.343465/

 

[Burhan Wani]

wow man.. mutilation is the specialty of muslims in case you forgot. recently you guys have mutilated our soldier, the most dishonorable thing an army can do. but wait.. who am i talking to ??

Yes we mutilated them just like you mutilated members of LeT cadres in so called surgical strikes. Your ancestors skinned alive dozens leaders of my tribe in year 1832 and 1947. Shame on you Zionists.
https://defence.pk/threads/minar-e-...edom-fighters-were-skinned-alive-1832.435026/

 

[Samlee]

by whom ??? r u dumb ?? by muslims ofcourse. I dont think you've ever known about partition. More hindus died than muslims and even Gandhi could not do anything about it and told hindus that it is our fate to suffer. That is the reason Godse killed Gandhi. Brush your history man. you seem to be a lot elder to me. atleast grow your brain to that scale.

Partition of India

1947 Punjab ~ 200,000 - 2,000,000 Massacre of Sikhs and Hindus by Muslims in West Punjab and of Muslims by Sikhs and Hindus in East Punjab. UNHCR estimates 14 million were displaced by the violence

You pakistanis have been taught lot of lies in your textbooks and academecia. The results are what we see today, the rotten brains coming out and being called as intelligents. One step out of the country and into the west, you are a laughing stock. Your history begins with Qasim.. whatelse can you learn.

What a misleading or propaganda article man?? Even the population of Jammu would not be 600000 at that point of time...

It Seems To Common Indiots Like You That The Entire World Lies Except Arnab Goswami and His Fellow Clowns


British daily The London Times quoting its special correspondent in India stated that the Maharaja, under his own supervision, got assassinated 2,37,000 Muslims, using military forces in the Jammu area. The editor of Statesman, Ian Stephen, in his book Horned Moon writes that till the end of autumn 1947, more than 200,000 Muslims were murdered in one go. Horace Alexander wrote in the Spectator (16 January 1948) that the killings had “the tacit consent of State authority” and put the figure at 2,00,000.

Also

Documents unravel that the events of time in Jammu that changed fate of millions received least reportage. Was the authoritarian Maharaja working under a plan and did he impose a blanket ban on noting down the gory events? Perhaps one would never know the details, but has been chronicled is: Around 500,000 Muslims were killed with military precision in Jammu in the months of October and November. (“Prejudice in Paradise”, communalism combat, Anuradha Bhasin Jamwal, 2005. http://www.indianet.nl/indpk146.html)

And

Out of a total of 8 lakhs Muslims who tried to migrate, more than “237,000 were systematically exterminated by all the forces of the Dogra state, headed by the Maharaja in person and aided by Hindus and Sikhs.” (“The Master and the Maharajas: The Sikh Princes and the East Punjab Massacres of 1947,” Ian Copland).

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

by whom ??? r u dumb ?? by muslims ofcourse. I dont think you've ever known about partition. More hindus died than muslims and even Gandhi could not do anything about it and told hindus that it is our fate to suffer. That is the reason Godse killed Gandhi. Brush your history man. you seem to be a lot elder to me. atleast grow your brain to that scale.

More Hindus died? where?

Partition of India

1947 Punjab ~ 200,000 - 2,000,000 Massacre of Sikhs and Hindus by Muslims in West Punjab and of Muslims by Sikhs and Hindus in East Punjab. UNHCR estimates 14 million were displaced by the violence

And your sources are wikipedia?



Millions of Panjabi were displaced.. almost 1 million slaughtered... Muslims were wiped out from East Panjab and Haryana ... They dont even make 1% of the population today.

You pakistanis have been taught lot of lies in your textbooks and academecia. The results are what we see today, the rotten brains coming out and being called as intelligents. One step out of the country and into the west, you are a laughing stock. Your history begins with Qasim.. whatelse can you learn.

Rants by a turd whose prime minister claims Vedic space ships,supaaa powar by 2012,plastic surgery and head transplants and atomic wars that happened thousands of years ago? you morons are even claiming Taj Mehal as Tejo mehlo a rajput temple and hindus colonising south america .. so give it a rest..

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

It was the specialty of Hindus to kill and mutilate unarmed people, women and children. They killed Muslims as well as Sikhs to remain in power. It was the efforts of 40,000 ex Sudhans who were the veteran of WW1&2 under British army, we liberated by revolt and made Azad riasat J&K independent from Maharaja Hari Singh in year 1947. Parallel to us under guidance of Sardar Ibrahim Khan first president of AJK, Col Mirza Hassan Jarral revolted against Dogra local administration of GB and liberated their home land.
https://defence.pk/threads/gilgit-b...-celebrated-in-london-uk.459767/#post-8887053
https://defence.pk/threads/martyrdom-anniversary-captain-hussain-khan-shaheed-11th-nov-1947.343465/

Ironic how the scumbags boast about muslim genocide of Kashmir in 47-48 on indian forums... and here they play the victims..
Genocide of Muslims, Jammu 1947

It is one of the least known genocides in modern history. It was carried out with such a precision that it is difficult to find its traces, except in the memories of the survivors, and the tales of horror they passed on to their next generations. Around 500,000 Muslims were killed with military precision. It was such an operation that language lacks words to express this offence of demolition of human being.

Though the targeted killing had already started in Jammu around mid July 1947, the operation got a fillip immediately after a fleeing Maharaja Hari Singh and his wife reached Jammu on 26 October 1947. An organised carnage was orchestrated to kill Muslims, wherever found or spotted in Jammu.

British daily The London Times quoting its special correspondent in India stated that the Maharaja, under his own supervision, got assassinated 2,37,000 Muslims, using military forces in the Jammu area. The editor of Statesman, Ian Stephen, in his book Horned Moon writes that till the end of autumn 1947, more than 200,000 Muslims were murdered in one go. Horace Alexander wrote in the Spectator (16 January 1948) that the killings had “the tacit consent of State authority” and put the figure at 2,00,000.

The Hindu Dogra ruler’s main aim was to change the demographic composition of the region by eliminating the Muslim population. Such was the intensity of carnage that in Jammu province about 123 villages were ‘completely depopulated’. Kathua district ‘lost’ almost fifty per cent of its Muslim population. Thousands of Gujars were massacred in mohalla Ramnagar. Village Raipur, within Jammu cantonment area was completely burnt down. The Dogra State troops were at the forefront of attacks on Muslims. The State authorities were also issuing arms not only to local volunteer organizations such as the RSS, but also to those in surrounding East Punjab districts such as Gurdaspur.

The State administration had not only demobilised a large number of Muslim soldiers serving in the state army, but Muslim police officers had also been sent home. In the Jammu city, the Muslim military were disarmed and the Jammu cantonment Muslim Brigadier replaced by a Hindu Dogra officer. Muslims seeking refuge in police stations and Deputy Commissioners’ offices were openly handed over to RSS beasts by the Dogra officers themselves.

Meanwhile, Maharaja of Patiala was not only supplying weapons but also a Brigade of Patiala State troops were operating in Jammu and Kashmir, without whose help and assistance, the objective could not have been achieved with such precision. The Times of London reported the events in Jammu with such a front page headlines: “Elimination of Muslims from Jammu”, and pointed out that Maharaja Hari Singh was “in person commanding all the forces” which were ethnically cleansing the Muslims.

That there was a design to change the demographics is evidenced by another well-reported incident. Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Mehr Chand Mahajan, upon arrival in Jammu told a delegation of Hindus, which met him in the Palace, that now when the power was being transferred to the people they should better demand parity. When one of the delegation members wanted to know how that was possible, Mahajan, pointing to the Ramnagar natural reserve below, where Muslim corpses were still lying said, “the population ratio too can change” like that (“Elimination of Muslims from Jammu” II, The Times, London, 10 August 1948, page 5. See also Ved Bhasin’s interview to Kashmir Life).

Both documentary and oral sources suggest that the crime committed on the Muslims was nothing less than an organized holocaust. Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah, who was appointed “Chief Emergency Administrator” on 30 October 1947 could not prevent the carnage. He writes in his autobiography Atish-e-Chinar (page 312) that the carnage got impetus after the arrival of Union Home Minster Sardar Patel, Union Defence Minster Baldev Singh along with the Maharaja of Patiala, a person known for his anti-Muslim bias, in Jammu. The trio met various Hindu organizations and delegations, after which the massacre attained a great momentum. Hindu fanatics, aided and abetted by government forces, started burning down village after village inhabited by Muslims. Women were raped at will. Weapons were distributed freely to marauders from the Kachi Chawni house of Pandith Prem Nath Dogra and motivated by Balraj Madhok.

On 6 November surviving Muslims were told to assemble in an open ground, to be sent to Pakistan, herded in trucks like cattle and killed mercilessly with machine gun fire between the Digiana and Samba belt. Women were abducted and raped. Even the daughter of the legendary Chaudhary Ghulam Abbas was not spared. Many women preferred death than falling prey to the cruel beasts who wouldn’t tire calling themselves as secular people.

On the ground, the killing operations were organized, directed and supervised by Maharani Tara Devi in league with her debauch Guru Sat Dev and the governor of Jammu, Chet Ram Chopra. At the politico-administrative level, Sheikh puts the blame solely on the Dogra ruler Hari Singh and Prime Minster Mahajan. At one point of time, Sheikh had even thought of initiating action against the duo for crimes against humanity (Atish-e-Chinar, page 331). But why didn’t he translate his thoughts into action remains shrouded in mystery. Did he surrender this right before Sardar Patel as quid pro quo for prime ministership, which came his way in March 1948? As is generally known, the government of India and the Dogra ruler were only interested in conceding him a limited role in a “Mysore type of government”. But later this plan was changed and Sheikh was offered full-fledged prime ministership. Or was it a result of coercive pressure applied by Patel on Abdullah to imprison his close relative caught red-handed of theft of valuable jewellery in Maharaja of Indore’s (known as Holkars) palace where he was employed?

The other aspect of the carnage was appropriation of properties of Muslims. The Muslim names were immediately erased to conform to new ownership. For instance Urdu Bazar became Rajinder Bazar and Islamia School became Hari Singh High School to conform to the new “ownership”. Almost 95 percent of left-over properties, which should have in the normal course been taken over by the State government were allowed appropriated by looters and rioters (Daily Telegraph of London dated 12 January 1948).

These properties continue to be under the illegal occupation of looters and their descendants and it is precisely for this reason that the Resettlement Bill faces a stiff opposition in Jammu fearing vacation of such properties under a due process of law. Even Indira Gandhi expressed such fears in Jammu in her 1983 election campaign.

Another incident needs a mention here. When Hindu refugees from Muzaffarabad and surrounding areas reaching Kashmir desired to be sent to Jammu or Punjab, local Muslims motivated Kashmiri tongawallas (horse-cart drivers) to transport them to Jammu against heavy odds. Initially 22 tongawallas were hired. They were later joined by many others from the Khannabal-Qazigund rural belt. On return all these poor tongawallas numbering around 90 were massacred near Nagrota. Their only fault was that they made Hindu refugees to reach their destinations safely. What makes this holocaust unique is the complicity of State on the one hand and the exemplary treatment of Kashmiri Muslims to its minorities on the other hand, given the grave provocation of Jammu genocide. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was so disgusted with the carnage that on two occasions (27 November and 25 December, 1947), he made mention of it in following words:

“The Hindus and Sikhs of Jammu and those who had gone there from outside (referring to RSS goons from Gurdaspur and surrounding areas) killed Muslims there. Their women have been dishonored. This has not been fully reported in the newspapers. The Maharaja of Kashmir is responsible for what has happened there” (Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, volume 90, page 115 and 298).

It is no wonder, then, that when Gandhi was killed by an RSS supported Hindu fanatic, sweets were distributed throughout Jammu in special thalis supplied from the Maharaja’s Palace.

But there have been some valiant efforts on the part of a few Hindus also who tried to save the caged Muslims in Jammu those days. The names of Krishen Dev Sethi, Ved Bhasin etc. top that list. But such instances have been few and far.

 

[Dem!god]

What's the purpose of this thread, to start a blame game and hurl insults.
That's what I suspect.

 

[ito]

It seem some are disparate that unrest was just confined to 6 districts of south Kashmir. North Kashmir was peaceful, Kargil was peaceful, Jammu and Ladhak didn't witnessed a single violent incidence. So they want to say now that those areas were peaceful because Muslims were killed and rendered as minorities.