The turbulence of Srinagar has not found any resonance in the Balti villages on the Line of Control. On a trip to these villages, which were ruled by Pakistan till 1971, THE WEEK found that people here don't want azadi or a return Pakistan, but a better life. And, what unites them is a love for India and Indians.
On September 4, the 57th consecutive day of turbulence in the Kashmir valley, an all-party delegation led by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh touched down in Srinagar, in an attempt to find a solution to the crisis. The overture met with a quick rebuff from the protesters. Separatist leaders did not even let in a group of opposition leaders who tried to meet them at their residences. A day later, violent protests erupted once again across the valley, and the delegation returned to Delhi empty handed.
Yet, despite the seemingly unending waves of protest, it would be a folly to paint the Kashmiri attitudes towards India in monochrome. THE WEEK recently travelled to one of Kashmir's remotest corners—more than 600km northeast of Srinagar—right on the Line of Control. Here, nestled in the lap of the mighty Karakoram ranges, lies a tiny sliver of Baltistan. These five villages—Chalunka, Turtuk, Tyakshi, Panchathang and Thang—which India annexed in 1971, remain to this day an integral part of India, socially, politically and culturally, despite being ruled by Pakistan for nearly a quarter of a century.
Baltistan was historically a part of the Ladakh wazarat (district) of the princely state of Kashmir. But after Maharaja Hari Singh chose to accede to India in October 1947, his representative to the region was overthrown in a coup on November 2, by a handful of British officers, aided by Pakistani soldiers. And, to date, the region remains in an administrative limbo, devoid of the formal status of a province within Pakistan, while India considers it a part of undivided Jammu and Kashmir. More than 95 per cent of the Baltis are Muslims, belonging to Shia, Sunni and Noorbakshia sects.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 18, 2016 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة September 18, 2016 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
The female act
The 19th edition of the Qadir Ali Baig Theatre Festival was of the women and by the women
A SHOT OF ARCHER
An excerpt from the prologue of An Eye for an Eye
MASTER OF MAKE-BELIEVE
50 years. after his first book, Jeffrey*Archer refuses to put down his'felt-tip Pilot pen
Smart and sassy Passi
Pop culture works according to its own unpredictable, crazy logic. An unlikely, overnight celebrity has become the talk of India. Everyone, especially on social media, is discussing, dissing, hissing and mimicking just one person—Shalini Passi.
Energy transition and AI are reshaping shipping
PORTS AND ALLIED infrastructure development are at the heart of India's ambitions to become a maritime heavyweight.
MADE FOR EACH OTHER
Trump’s preferred transactional approach to foreign policy meshes well with Modi’s bent towards strategic autonomy
DOOM AND GLOOM
Democrats’ message came across as vague, preachy and hopelessly removed from reality. And voters believed Trump’s depiction of illegal immigrants as a source of their economic woes
WOES TO WOWS
The fundamental reason behind Trump’s success was his ability to convert average Americans’ feelings of grievance into votes for him
POWER HOUSE
Trump International Hotel was the only place outside the White House where Trump ever dined during his four years as president
DON 2.0
Trump returns to presidency stronger than before, but just as unpredictable
