A widespread agitation throughout the

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

occurred in 1931 against the Maharaja's government. The Maharaja was forced to appoint the Glancy Commission to investigate the people's concerns. Various political reforms were adopted including the introduction of the Jammu and Kashmir Praja Sabha (legislative assembly). The movement also saw the rise of

Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir Abdullah was the founding leader of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (later rena ...

as the leader of Kashmiris. The movement was funded by some well-to-do Muslim Zaildars and business houses.

Events

On 13 July 1931, thousands of Kashmiris flocked to the central jail in

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its ...

to see the trial of Abdul Qadeer. As the time for obligatory '' Zuhr'' prayer approached, a Kashmiri stood up to deliver the

adhan Adhan ( ar, أَذَان ; also variously transliterated as athan, adhane (in French), azan/azaan (in South Asia), adzan (in Southeast Asia), and ezan (in Turkish), among other languages) is the Islamic call to public prayer ( salah) in a mo ...

. The

Dogra The Dogras or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group in India and Pakistan consisting of the Dogri language speakers. They live predominantly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, and in adjoining areas of Punjab, Himac ...

governor, Raizada Tartilok Chand, ordered his soldiers to open fire on them, total 22 Kashmiris died in the firing. The people carried the dead through the streets of Maharajganj, Srinagar, chanting slogans opposing Dogra brutality. The incident shook the state, and a week-long period of mourning was observed. Traffic between Srinagar,

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan ...

and

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of ...

was halted from 13 to 26 July. Some miscreant Hindu shopkeepers jeered the mourners which enraged violence and opportunists looted shops, protests intensified. Anti-Hindu riots began, leading to the death of three Hindus, the wounding of many more, and the looting of Hindu-owned shops. The Hindus retaliated, leading to more clashes between the two groups. The violence spread to Kashmir province and Jammu; three British

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

, numbering about 500 soldiers, were sent to support Maharaja

Hari Singh Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, following his uncle's death, Singh became ...

and restore law and order. The Government was not permitting any procession or funeral. The 22 Muslims were buried in Mazar-e-Shohada, Srinagar. After few days a bridge called Sangam Bridge was burned. A Committee of Enquiry was appointed with Sir Barjor Dalal, Chief Justice as chairman, two High Court Judges – one from both religions – and 4 Committee Members including two Hindu and two Muslims as nominated by respective communities. But for some reason, the Committee failed to submit any report. Hence, the Government decided to publish unilateral views on disturbance. The incident led to the rise of young

Sheikh Abdullah Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir Abdullah was the founding leader of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (later re ...

, and his rivalry with the maharaja continued until 1947.

Meeting with the Maharaja

Muslim representatives, including

Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah Mirwaiz Muhammad Yusuf Shah (19 February 1894 – 12 December 1968) was a mirwaiz of Kashmir. He also served as a President of Azad Kashmir. Early life Yusuf Shah was born on 19 February 1894 (13 Shaban 1311 Hijri) at Rajauri kadal to Ghula ...

, Mirwaiz Hamadani, Syed Hussain Shah Jalali, Saad-ud-din Shawl,

Ghulam Ahmad Ashai Khwaja Ghulam Ahmad Ashai (Arabic: غولم أحمد أشي) was an Indian Kashmiri bureaucrat and political leader. Life He was the grandson of Rayees-ul-Waqt Hajji Mukhthar Shah Ashai. In reward for his service and academic achievements, ...

, Yaqub Ali, Munshi Shahab-ud-Din, and

Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas (4 February 1904 – 18 December 1967) was a leading politician of Jammu and Kashmir and the President of the Muslim Conference party. After his migration to Pakistan administered Kashmir in 1947, he became the head of the ...

addressed the maharajah on 15 August. They made a number of accusations against Hindus in general and the state administration and prime minister in particular, alleging that evidence given to the Riots Enquiry Committee was fabricated or suppressed. The maharaja refused to dismiss the prime minister, and rejected the Muslim leaders' allegations as "unfounded".

Temporary truce

The Muslim leaders were dissatisfied, but they met with the prime minister on 26 August and signed an agreement to end the agitation.

Aftermath

The agitation temporarily subsided, primarily because of the Kashmir Darbar's conciliatory attitude toward its subjects (permitting Ahrar-i-Islam,

Mazhar Ali Azhar Mazhar Ali Azhar (13 March 1895 – 4 November 1974) was a politician in British India and later Pakistan, and one of the founders of Majlis-e-Ahrar-ul-Islam. He was elected three times to the Punjab Assembly, took part in the Madhe Sahaba Ag ...

and two companions to visit Kashmir privately). With the intervention of Muslim sympathisers outside Kashmir, 14 August was observed as Kashmir Day in Kashmir and several parts of India. Demonstrations and meetings were held in sympathy with Kashmiri Muslims. The meetings adopted resolutions calling for freedom of religion, the restoration of mosques and Muslim shrines, compensation for dependents of those killed or injured, and an investigation of the conduct of civil and military officers during the agitation.

Events

Meeting with the Maharaja

Temporary truce

Aftermath

References

Further reading