UNCIP Visits to Azad Kashmir
On July 8, 1948, the President of the Azad Kashmir Government, Sardar Mohammad IbrahimKhan, lodged a formal protest with the Chairman of the United Nations Commission for Indiaand Pakistan (UNCIP). He highlighted that the Azad Kashmir Government was not given anopportunity to present its perspective during the UN debates on Jammu and Kashmir fromJanuary to April 1948. The protest letter emphasized that “the failure of the Security Council to grant a hearing tothe Representative of the Azad Kashmir Government was a serious injustice to the people ofJammu and Kashmir.” It urged the UNCIP to visit Azad Kashmir at the earliest opportunity. The UNCIP Chairman accepted the invitation from the Azad Kashmir Government, and theCommission visited Azad Kashmir in September 1948. On September 4, the Commission metinformally with representatives of the Azad Movement, including Chaudri Ghulam Abbas,Supreme Head, and Sardar Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, President. Mr. Abbas argued that Part III of the Resolution should have been the first step, although hedid not object to Parts I and II. He believed that once the conditions for a plebiscite wereagreed upon, implementing a cease-fire agreement would be straightforward. Sardar Ibrahimemphasized that the Resolution did not ensure India’s complete acceptance of the specificconditions for a plebiscite, the fairness and impartiality of which could be determined by theCommission. He stated that an unconditional cease-fire was unacceptable. Following this, the Commission formed an investigating sub-committee. On September 14,1948, this group, led by Mr. Huddle (United States) and including Mr. E. Graeffe and Mr. H.Graeffe (Belgium), Major Smith (United States), and two members of the Secretariat, visitedvarious localities in Azad Kashmir. They held discussions with key figures of the AzadGovernment. The group returned to Srinagar on September 18 and provided a detailed reportto the Commission. On September 19, the Commission convened its 62nd meeting in Srinagar, where it approvedthe text of a reply to a letter from Sir Zafrullah Khan dated September 6. The Government of India submitted to the Commission that “The evacuated territoriessituated outside the fixed line should be provisionally administered by existing localauthorities, or, if necessary, by local authorities designated by the Commission. They shouldbe supervised by observers of the Commission but remain under the sovereignty of the stateof Jammu and Kashmir until the final settlement of the dispute between India and Pakistan.” In September 1948, the Government of Azad Kashmir established a working relationshipwith the UNCIP, marking a significant diplomatic milestone in its international relations.
