The McMahon Line: A Century of Discord

by J.J. Singh

Sir Henry McMahon, a British colonial administrator, drew a line along the Himalayas at the Simla Convention of 1913-14, demarcating what would in later years become the effective boundary between China and India. The boundary, disputed by India's northern neighbour, has had a profound effect on the relations between the two Asian giants, resulting prominently in the war of 1962 but also in several skirmishes and stand-offs both before and after that. It continues to be a thorn in the side - reaching a flashpoint at the tri-junction between Tibet, Sikkim and Bhutan in Doklam in 2017 - and may derail all the progress in bilateral ties if left unattended. General J.J. Singh examines the evolution of the boundary and the nuances of British India's Tibet policy from the eighteenth century through to India's Independence, analyses the repercussions for contemporary times and puts forth recommendations for the way ahead.

Genres: India, China, History, International Relations

604 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 6, 2019

Reviews

[Apurba Ganguly · Rating 5 out of 5]

First and foremost, I thank Harper Collins India for giving me an opportunity to review this pathbreaking work of political nonfiction.

The McMahon Line is not merely a work of geopolitical nonfiction. It is the bird's eye view of one of India's most contentious issues in its Political History : the Sino-Indian relations. The author does justice to the ones who read it as well as to those about whom it is written. Judging by its contents, it is without a doubt that this book is the product by a man of experience and wisdom. Indeed, this book deserves to be an intrinsic part of studies pertaining to national politics and international relations.

The book begins with a very detailed historical context to the Tibet issue that became a bone of contention between India and China. The introductory chapter is patient enough to explain the readers how this problem came into being, by elaborating on the inception of Tibet as a bridge between two of the world's most ancient cradles of human civilization. This is the very first reason I loved The McMahon Line so much. Secondly, the book presents facts with meticulous attention to its sources. A proper bibliography, with an equally perfected index transforms The McMahon Line from a mere nonfiction text to a book of academic significance. The structure of the book coincides with that of those books which revolve around academic research. Thirdly, every detail pertaining to Tibetan Political History are presented in such a manner so that readers can't easily join the dots that connect with the parts where India is concerned. Moreover, the book doesn't require any prerequisite knowledge for the readers to understand The McMahon Line clearly. In fact, this book is comprehensible to novices, students, and scholars alike. The book does justice to those who know very little about Indian Political History by bringing in extensive contexts to acquaint them with important events in the timeline of Indian polity. And finally, The McMahon Line analyses the events, during the course of introducing new facts and figures. This quality allows this book to be distinguished from the monotonous nonfiction that we term as "textbooks". In fact, it is a shame to teach and to be taught books which do not provide enough space to readers to create their own inferences. These books can only provide you information and not knowledge.

Indeed, J.J. Singh's book, The McMahon Line, not traces the ups and downs of the Sino-Indian-Tibetan relations, but also speaks volumes for a freezing landlocked country which has to be reliant on its neighbours. International peace begins with cooperation and faith, and it is trust that keeps it going. I convey my best regards to the author for his future endeavours.

[Aqeel Haider · Rating 5 out of 5]

Completed this book

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤: The McMahon Line

𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: J.J Singh

𝐘𝐎𝐏 : 2019

𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: International Affairs/Non-fictional

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 4.7/5

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: Coming over to review this Book. It's been divided into 9 Parts and 22 Chapters.Total 370 Pages.

This is a very important book for understanding geopolitics and the Boundary dispute of 🇨🇳 and 🇮🇳

The author starts the book with a historical background of Tibet and China starting from the 8th century. He thoroughly brief readers about culture, ethnicity and Lama's monastery system. Who is Dalai Lama and how he is selected?Tibet's relationship with China and India.And role of Himalaya Range which creates a hindrance to the two great civilisations.

When British rule came to Sub-Continent. 1st Expedition by F.E Younghusband in 1903-4 till Lhasa and what accord was secured at that time. Importance of Sikkim and McMahon line of 890Km which was signed by only Tibet not Chinese in 1914 Shimla convention. Held under Arthur Henry McMahon. What was inner Tibet and what was outer Tibet? Where is Amdo and Kham region and Why it is important to China?

Its comprehensive book and bit difficult to understand without Map. So when you study the book do it with Map. Areas like Isu Razi pass,Tawang, Pomed,Zuyul, kokonor Lake,Chamdo,Shigaste, ghaste and much more.

#Recommended.
#thanks

[Saheb Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The utility of this book lies in its detailed description of the McMahon line, India's boundary in the northeast. Rich with historical, political, and social information about this geography, it deepens one's understanding of this area significantly. It is also useful for its description of developments inside Tibet right from the early twentieth century and before. It also details the proceedings of the Simla Conference of 1913-14, shedding light on the minutest of considerations of all parties involved.
The anecdotes from the author's own experience with China are interesting as well.
My only major grouse with the book is that it takes the line, more or less, that the India-China boundary has been defined over centuries by tradition, custom, usage. This is a paradoxical statement. A boundary is, by literal definition, shared between two states. Thus, when defining a particular boundary, it must be done by both sides jointly. This has never happened between the Republic of India and the People's Republic of China.
Moreover, whose tradition, whose custom, whose usage? While these are historical facts, there is an element of subjectivity to them. Each side can interpret this statement as per their own whims and fancies, as they have. When they say there is a traditional and customary boundary, they're actually referring to their understanding of the traditional and customary boundary. But this is by no means a shared and joint understanding - which is what it needs to be.
The book is also striking in that it is published in 2019 - post Doklam, pre Galwan. Thus, the recalibration brought on by Galwan is simply not present. It is thus interesting to note the positive mood that was present in the year before Galwan, despite perhaps, warning signs.

[Divya Pal · Rating 3 out of 5]

An authoritative, but not pedantic, account of the historical evolution of the McMahon Line on India’s north-eastern border. The history of Tibet in indeed comprehensive. But the book needed better graphics and clearer maps to clarify the mystifying geography of the mountainous region – Google maps was more valuable. For old maps I found this site to be very useful: https://www.davidrumsey.com/.
The book could also do with a good editor to remove not only linguistic eggcorns like "tow the line", but also irritatingly frequent repetitions or certain incidents and extracts. The ending was too verbose without any clear-cut strategic answers – the author also seems to have been lulled into complacence by the rousing reception he received during his visit to Beijing. Ironically, he accuses of his predecessors, bureaucrats and their political masters, including Nehru, of being seduced by the Hindi Chini Bhai Bha rhetoric and remaining in a state of denial and ignorance of the evil designs of the Chinese before the ’62 conflict.

[Rajiv Chopra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will give this book a five star, despite some editing issues. There are sections where Gen J.J. Singh seems repetitive. This is a minor blemish.

The discussions, the conflicts, the history around India's border with China is complex. This, of course, includes the whole issue surrounding Tibet. There were many confusing stories that he had to pull together to write this book. He has written a factual and coherent account.

On the whole, he has been balanced. Yes, you can sense his unease with the Chinese, and this is natural. However, he does demonstrate a grudging admiration for their strategic strength. I like this.

This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand this complex issue. I also think that this is a book that should be read a few times.

The last chapters are hopeful. I don't share his optimism, especially from India's perspective. I don't think we take the time to learn the lessons that history painfully lays out for us.

[Sanjay Banerjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

General JJ singh - former Indian Army Chief and Governor of Arunachal Pradesh - brings his long years of experience to bear on Sino-Indian relations. He examines the evolutions of the boundary and the nuances of British India’s Tibet policy from the 18th century through to India’s Independence, analyses the repercussions for contemporary times and puts forth his recommendations for the way ahead in the concluding chapter.

This was the 3rd book in a row (after The Naga Odyssey and The Great Game in the Himalayas) that I picked up to enhance my insights into the North East and understanding of the strategic balance in a sensitive region. Excellent book and General Singh clearly appears to be a scholarly General with deep insights into the India-China situation. Will recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding the North East and India-China relationship.

[Yash Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The McMahon Line, A century of discord by J J Singh is a brilliantly researched and very analytically written book about the Sino-Indian border dispute.

The main USP of this literature is that it's written by the former chief of the Indian Army.

Although, this book is only for no-nonsense readers. Those who are living in a 'La La Land' can stay away from this because accepting the reality is not everyone's cup of tea.

For the detailed article you can visit my website- https://dontbignorant.in/the-mcmahon-...

[adetour · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book detailing the McMohan Line, evolution

It was a very nice read chronologically about the evolution of the McMohan Line, the geographical details, the issues and recent history of Tibet, details about NEFA, the recent steps taken. Etc
Editing could have been done more finely to avoid repetitions within and across chapters.

[Prasoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book provides a lot of details about India-China border dispute from a historical perspective. It is written in a lucid narrative and presents its own take with the reasoning about it. I enjoyed reading it in the middle of India-China standoff continuing now, which started in May 2020.

[Rakesh Kalani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detailed description by the author based on facts, history and his practical on ground experience. Although, this book is pre-ladakh stand off between India and China, after reading this book it seems that the standoff was inevitable and we can see many more such events. Thanks to the author for writing this book and educating curious readers.

[Vineeth Nair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb read. A comprehensive account of the history of India-China borders. Good research packed with great amount of details. A must read.