In 1947, under the pressure of an invasion of Pakistani forces, the Hindu King of Kashmir, Hari Singh, requested the Indian army’s support. To get this support, King Hari Singh was required to accede Kashmir to India. The King approved India’s annexation of Kashmir, even though he was hated by nearly the entire population, except for a small Hindu minority, due to decades of religious intolerance. The fact that King Singh was not a democratic leader did not matter to the Indian state.

A year later, a UN ceasefire signed by the Indian and Pakistani forces divided Kashmir into a Pakistani-controlled and Indian-controlled areas. A UN plebiscite was supposed to be held that would allow Kashmiris to determine their own futures however, said plebiscite was never held by either side.

Kashmir is politically important to India and Pakistan due to the military advantage it gives either side over the other. However, this geo-political concern has overshadowed the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people.

The struggle for a free Kashmir historically has lasted as long as the struggle for an independent India. The Kashmiri people have never wanted to be part of either India or Pakistan and have been fighting for their independent statehood from India and Pakistan since 1949.

From 1947 till 1987 there was an unorganized series of public agitations against the Indian government. In 1977 the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) was founded as a secular nationalist organization. In 1989, under the leadership of the JKLF and various Islamic forces, there was a widespread popular insurgency against the Indian government. This uprising was violently repressed by the Indian government. In 2008, a renewed Kashmiri social uprising has been underway and has garnered support from public intellectuals like Arundhati Roy.