How has India responded to Kashmir’s offense and why are tensions so high in the region?
Tensions between India and the Pakistani archipelago were quickly escalated after a massacre of 25 Indian tourists and a Nepal citizen on Tuesday, with Nepal citizens being warned of conflict in the disputed Himalaya Kashmir region on Tuesday.
A previously unknown militant group of Islamic groups claimed to be responsible for the attack, and although India did not publicly provide any evidence, India immediately linked to Pakistan. Pakistan denies any involvement.
In a series of punitive measures announced since Tuesday, India has downgraded diplomatic ties, suspended a key moisture sharing treaty and revoked all visas issued to Pakistani nationals. In retaliation, Pakistan has closed airspace for all Indian-owned or Indian-operated airlines and suspended all trade with India, including traveling to and from any third country.
Why is Kashmir so sensitive?
The area has been controversial in the foothills of the Himalayas since India and Pakistan emerged in 1947. Both fully claim that it has complete control of a part of the territory and established a border based on one of the world’s worst military forces with a ceasefire border of 1947-48-48-48: the “line of control” based on Ceasefire Border. China controls another part of the East.
India and Pakistan fought two more wars against Kashmir in 1999.
The dispute stems from the zoning of colonial India in 1947, when the small, semi-autonomous “princes” of the subcontinent were folded into India or Pakistan, and despite the Muslim majority, local rulers chose to be part of India.
The armed insurgents in Kashmir have boycotted Delhi for decades, and many Muslim Kashmiris support the rebels’ goal of uniting territory under Pakistani rule or as an independent state. India accuses Pakistan of supporting militants – claiming Pakistan denies it.
What has happened in recent years?
In 2019, Narendra Modi’s government launched a severe security crackdown in India-managed Kashmir and revoked the region’s special status, which has restricted autonomy since 1949. The move has led to a long-lasting Indian oath of Indian nationalism and has been widely welcomed throughout India, but has angered many in the territory itself. Against the backdrop of widespread repression, the rebellious violence gradually weakened and tourists returned to the area.
New rules were implemented to enable outsiders to buy land in Kashmir for the first time, and many believe it was an attempt by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to expel it from the land and change the Muslim population in the region.
In its special status, Kashmir is able to define who its permanent residents are to prevent income from applying for jobs, scholarships or land purchases in other parts of India. As new rules of residence expand, India qualifies to live and work in Kashmir, leading to allegations that it attempts to change the population composition of the region. The Resistance Front cited the claim Tuesday’s attack.
Why did India react so strongly to the attack?
The attack was very embarrassed by Modi and his BJP party during a visit to U.S. Vice President JD Vance, and the party has been boasting about the success of its security policies in Kashmir since 2019. The sectarian nature of the attack has exacerbated anger in India, with some male tourists reportedly being asked to recite Islamic verses to determine who will be killed.
What is the significance of the Indian Water Treaty?
While some of the visible praise in the past few days is familiar with the crisis between India and Pakistan, there is no war, India’s decision to suspend the 1964 Indian Water Treaty was very big. Over the years, the treaty survived endless crises and is one of the world’s most successful water-sharing agreements that allow the sharing of the lifelines of both countries’ waters in the river system.
The huge dependence of Pakistan’s agriculture on irrigation water in the Indus system makes the country crucial. Pakistan said any interference with the current would be considered an “act of war”.
How bad is this?
The last major conflict between India and Pakistan was the 1999 Kagir War, which was limited compared to previous conflicts. Although both countries retain nuclear weapons, traditional ideas have limited this fact, but this often limits rather than exacerbates the danger of serious conflict in recent decades.
However, past radical attacks (2016 and 2019) have led to military retaliation in India. Many observers believe that the bar association means India will hope to launch air strikes on militants across borders, the lowest response.
