1965 Indo-Pakistan War An Overview

Abstract

Kashmir is the main bone of contention between India and Pakistan. It is the base of strained relations between both countries. Multiple talks and dialogues happened between the high officials of India and Pakistan but the issue remained unresolved. A major shift began in 1963 when the hair of Muhammad (S.A.W) was stolen from Hazrat Bal Mosque of Indian Occupied Kashmir. In 1964, Shiekh Abdullah was released and in 1965, he moved on foreign visit to Middle Eastern Countries where he presented the grievances of Indian Kashmiris and spoke about the right of self-determination of the Kashmiri people. On such act of Shiekh Abdullah, he was re-imprisoned in May 1965. Before the imprisonment of Shiekh Abdullah, small skirmishes happened on Rann of the Kutch region, a border area between the Indian State of Gujrat and the Sindh Province of Pakistan. However, Pakistan protected its territory and deterred Indian Forces. In June 1965, the Boundary Commission was set up to decide on the border issue of India and Pakistan in which they awarded a large border area to India. Operation Gibraltar was planned which aimed to galvanize revolt within Kashmir and this would provide an opportunity for Pakistan to occupy the remaining part of Kashmir. This strategy failed, resulting in the capture of guriella who were planted by Pakistan for the galvanization of revolt in Kashmir. When Guriella forces were captured by India, this led to the beginning of the War between India and Pakistan. This research paper has discussed the entire scenario of the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965 in detail.