This refers to  Prof. Fida Muhammad Hassnain`s letter (GK 7th Aug) wherein   he has mentioned that Pt. Ram Chander Kak had advised Maharaja Hari Singh to  remain independent. No doubt  the Administrative Head of the State  had advised the Maharaja for the same but the latter was in a fix and failed to take the vital decision till 3rd October, 1947. Then on 4th October 1947, Khwaja  Ghulam Nabi Gilkar dismissed the Maharaja through a telegraph and declared the establishment of `Provisional  Revolutionary Government of   Kashmir' at a Press Conference in Rawalpindi. Only few Cabinet Ministers were nominated publicly. Names of others were kept a guarded secret as most of them were in Valley at that time. Soon after Gilkar Sahib came over to Srinagar and had a long meeting with Shiekh  Muhammad Abdullah. He sought latter's cooperation. But being under the  influence of Gandhi  and Nehru, Shiekh   declined outright. After this event Gilkar   was  arrested from Waza Pora, Srinagar. Later on after  a long incarceration at Bohu Fort Prison (Jammu), he was deported  to Pakistan through R. S. Pora border along with Aga Showkat Ali (General Secretary Muslim Conference ),  K.H. Khursheed, Begum Birjees Gani  Rainthoo (Jamalatta, Srinagar) and several other Muslim Conference leaders.
It was Mr. Gilkar   who first put forward the idea of Independent Kashmir and discussed it from an academic perspective. He advocated Independent Kashmir with missionary zeal under extremely hostile atmosphere of Pakistan and Azad Kashmir during those days. So he was rejected as a traitor. Finally he was kept under detention for several years. But he did not relent and continued to pen down his arguments in favour of Independent Kashmir through   national and international newspapers. That he was the ideologue of an Independent Kashmir has been acclaimed by Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah in his autobiography Aatish-e-Chinar and also by  Shamim Ahmad Shamim in weekly Aeena. But we have forgotten our heroes. Even separatists have not mentioned it till date as to who put forward the idea of Independent Kashmir.

Aga  Syed  Hyder  Ali  Safvi
University Of Tehran , Iran

Lastupdate on : Fri, 13 Aug 2010 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Fri, 13 Aug 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sat, 14 Aug 2010 00:00:00 IST