Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah of Kashmir, 1965–1975: From Externment to Enthronement

Abstract

Ousted as Premier, Jammu and Kashmir, in August 1953 and anointed as Chief Minister in February 1975, the so-called ‘Lion of Kashmir’ Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was imprisoned, in between these years, ultimately on charges of treason, with brief intermissions. Much has been written about the politics of Kashmir dispute, less so about the Sheikh and his personal troubles especially after the death of his friend Jawaharlal Nehru in May 1964. This somewhat overshadowed decade of his life, in comparison with his hey-days of 1947–1953, shows the kind of settlement in Kashmir that the government of Indira Gandhi was willing to consider. More interestingly, it shows how Sheikh Abdullah was willing to agree to it and provides the context in which he moved from being in a conflictual relationship with New Delhi to becoming, once again, a collaborator in Srinagar in 1975, thereby showcasing the limits of Abdullah’s politics and popularity.

Lal Bahadur Shastri, 1964–1966: Leader at a Glance

“…His friends, like the Gandhian Sudhir Ghosh and the Quaker Horace Alexander, had read the writing on the wall. Ghosh had written to Alexander, when Abdullah went abroad, that ‘a few wrong remarks will give those elements in the Congress party who are anxious to push their knives into Sheikh, the necessary handle’ (Ankit, 2018, p. 90). Two days before his return, the Nehruvian Mridula Sarabhai was convinced that ‘even before he went abroad, a conspiracy had been hatched to create such circumstances as would compel him to remain out of the country’.…”

“…In the present world situation, an independent Kashmir would become a hotbed of intrigue. (Ankit, 2018, p. 90)…”