Mohan Madhukar Rao Bhagwat Ji, the Sarsanghchalak of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on the occasion of the inauguration of a Gurudwara at Sindhi Camp in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh on October 5, 2025 said, “Many Sindhi brothers are sitting here. I am very happy. They did not go to Pakistan; they went to undivided India… Circumstances have sent us here from that home because that home and this home are not different”. While referring to undivided Bharat he emphasized, “The whole of Bharat is one home, but someone has removed the one room of our home where my table, chair, and clothes used to be kept. They have occupied it”. He further asserted, “Tomorrow, I have to take it back and resettle there”. While saying so, he did not directly mentioned the occupied territories of Jammu and Kashmir but it is quite obvious that in his statement the occupied room refers to Pakistan occupied territories of Bharat. This statement is significant amid Bharat’s ongoing diplomatic and strategic standoff with Pakistan particularly when massive protests are being organised in POJK and POTL, brutalities are being done on the protestors by Pakistani forces and on the other hand our Government reasserts that POJK is an integral part of Bharat.
It is a fact that Jammu and Kashmir was the 2nd largest Princely State after Hyderabad at the time of Independence in 1947 having total area of 222236 sq kms. Being Muslim majority state, Pakistan wanted Jammu and Kashmir to be the part of Pakistan. But this did not happen and for this reason Pakistan attacked Jammu and Kashmir on October 22, 1947 under Operation Gulmarg that resulted into brutal killing of thousands of Hindus and Sikhs, atrocities on women, loot and burning of houses. As a result, Hindus and Sikhs were forced to flee from their homes to safer zones in Jammu and other states of Bharat. On 26th of October, 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh, the last Dogra ruler of the princely state of Jammu Kashmir signed Instrument of Accession thereby acceding Jammu Kashmir to Dominion of Bharat. The areas that were affected by Pakistan in 1947-48 included Rajouri, Poonch, Mirpur, Muzaffrabad, Deva-Batala, Gilgit, Baltistan, Baramulla, among others. After cease fire line was established on 1st January 1949, Jammu Kashmir was divided across this line. Pakistan gained illegal control on Mirpur, Muzaffrabad, Gilgit, Baltistan and four tehsils of Poonch district. Out of this Mirpur and Muzaffarabad had an area of 13297 sq kms whereas Gilgit-Baltistan had 64817 sq km area. The total area of 78114 sq came under the illegal occupation of Pakistan was called POJK till August 5, 2019. And the people displaced from POJK are called POJK Displaced Persons of 1947.
After August of 5, 2019 J&K was bifurcated into two Union Territories. The territory of the UT of J&K under illegal occupation of Pakistan is called as Pakistan occupied Jammu Kashmir (POJK) having area of 13297 sq kms while Gilgit-Baltistan under the illegal control of Pakistan is called as Pakistan occupied Territories of Ladakh (POTL) with area of 64817 sq kms. During Indo-China war 1962, China occupied Aksai Chin region having an area of 37555 sq kms. In 1963, Pakistan ceded Shaksgam valley to China having 5180 sq km area. Thus, the total area under the illegal occupation of China is called came to be 42735 and known as China occupied Territories of Ladakh (COTL). During Chinese incursions into Ladakh and before the loss of strategic Aksai Chin, Nehru said in Parliament in August 1959 “We did not know where it was. It is a territory where not even a single blade of grass grows.” Mahavir Tyagi, a senior Congress leader himself, pointed to his bald head and said: “Nothing grows here … should it be given away to somebody else?” Nehru was reported to have said in Parliament ‘not a single blade of grass grows there.’ Unfortunately, the then Prime Minister, Pandit Nehru could not realize the geo-strategic and geo-political significance of Aksai Chin. Moreover, he was totally unaware of even its location. This legacy of ignorance is continued in Congress today also as it hardly shows any concern over POJK and POTL.
Since decades the aggrieved population of POJK and POTL has been suffering because of lack of basic necessities, exploitation of their natural sources, heavy taxes, socio-economic and political marginalization at the hands of Pakistanis. But the successive Governments in Bharat have either remained silent over the issue of their human rights violations or most of the times ignored it for the reason best known to them. Even these issues of great concern never become the narrative of media, academic and political discourse of Bharat the way it should have been. It was on February 22, 1994 Parliament of India unanimously passed a resolution which states that Jammu Kashmir is an integral part of India, and that Pakistan must vacate parts of the State under its occupation. Almost for two decades after this resolutions also there was hardly any major concern shown by the successives Governments over the issue of POJK and ongoing human rights violations there.
With the coming of Narendra Modi as Prime Minister of Bharat in the year 2014, there was major shift in Bharat’s strategy towards Jammu Kashmir. Abrogation of Article 370 and complete political integration of Jammu Kashmir with Bharat, zero tolerance policy on Pakistan sponsored terrorism and separatism, the pledge of ‘Retrieving POJK’ are on the national and political agenda of Modi Government. Since 2014, it has been asserted that entire Jammu Kashmir is an integral part of Bharat and reclaiming its occupied territories has become more vocal and assertive. On the eve of 23rd Kargil Vijay Diwas at Jammu in July 2023, Rajnath Singh recalled the supreme sacrifice of the Indian Army and once again asserted that “POJK was a part of Bharat, is and will remain a part of Bharat. How can it be that Baba Amarnath in the form of Shiva is with us and Mother Sharda Shakti is on the other side of LoC” i.e. POJK. In the same event Dattatreya Hosabale, Sarkaryavah of Rashtriya Sawayamsevak Sangh said, “The people of POJK are the first victims of independent Bharat. They should get complete justice. They are longing today, they are looking towards Bharat and questioning when they will get freedom from Pakistan”.
The pledge of full integration of Jammu Kashmir has been accomplished by the Modi Government with the amendment in Article 370. Operation Sindoor that smashed terror infrastructure in Pakistan was also not just an operation but a Modi’s doctrinal change and a policy against terrorism. Taking a firm stand on Pakistan, he ruled out the possibility of any dialogue or trade. During a public rally in Bikaner in May, 2025 he gave stern warning to Pakistan and said, “There will be no talks and no trade with Pakistan. It there are talks, they will only be about POJK”. During Operation Sindoor, every Bharatiya in one voice urged the Prime Minister Modi to bring back POJK. Modi Government also seems to resolve the issue of POJK and POTL.
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