Kashmir's Untold Story: Declassified

by Iqbal Chand Malhotra, Maroof Raza

Why Has This State Of Siege In The Kashmir Valley Continued For 72 Years Since The Partition Of India? What Role Has Pakistan Played In It All Of These Years? And Will There Ever Be A Resolution To The Militancy In The State? How Will Islamabad Get The Forces Of Islamic Jihad-Nurtured And Based In Pakistan-To Ever Reconcile To The Existing Boundaries Of J&K? How Important Is The Ownership Of The Waters Of The Rivers Of The Indus System For Pakistan-Despite Generous Supplies Under The Indus Waters Treaty-In Determining An End To The Siege Within Kashmir? What Are China'S Interests In J&K And How Does The Success Of The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (Cpec) For Oil And Gas Supplies Hinge On Pakistan'S Occupation Of Northern Areas Of Kashmir? Why Does The Future Survival And Growth Of The Chinese Microchip Industry Depend Upon The Continuance Of China'S Control Of The Waters And Dams In The Indus River System? Kashmir'S Untold Declassified Provides Answers To These Gripping Questions And Joins The Dots In Presenting The Matrix Of A Consistent And Compelling Argument Regarding The Future Of The State Of Jammu And Kashmir. Today, The State'S Water Resources Are Coveted By The Beleaguered Chinese Microchip Industry And It Appears That This Is Going To Determine The Continuing Militancy In The State. Malhotra And Raza Argue That China And Its Client Pakistan Will Actively Back The Militancy, Come What May. Delving Deeper, The Book Also Reveals Amazing Insights Into The Government Of India'S Policy Towards The State, Right From 1889, When It First Imposed Central Rule And Dispossessed The Rule Of The Then Maharaja, Till Date. Owing To Its Strategic Location, The Intrigues Within The State And The Machinations Of Its Neighbours Have Resulted In The Government Directly Administering Its Affairs, One Way Or The Other, For The Last 130 Years.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Military Fiction, Politics, India

218 pages, Hardcover

Published September 18, 2019

Reviews

[Amit Bagaria · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am surprised that this book has an average rating of >4 stars. It is perhaps because the authors are both 'famous personalities'.

Of the 15-odd nonfiction books that I have read in the last 3 years, this was definitely the worst. IT WAS A REAL STRUGGLE FOR ME TO SOMEHOW COMPLETE THE BOOK.

The book has no structure, no flow, and no consistency. Dates and events are all over the place, with no chronology or hierarchy. Names appear out of nowhere, with no context as to who some of the people are. It is almost as if notes were taken from time to time in a diary format and then transcribed into a book.

For example, on Pg. 26, it is mentioned that the Maharaja leased the Gilgit kingdom to the British for a period of 60 years; whereas, on Pg. 31, the lease period is mentioned as 75 years. the state of J&K is referred to as "Jammu and Kashmir" in many places, and as "Jammu & Kashmir" in many others. Navy ships' names are NOT italicized on Pg. 151 (WRONG), whereas they are italicized on the very next page (CORRECT).

There are dozens of grammatical errors throughout the book. One example — the word "was" is written as "as" in the last para of Pg. 41. Most of the maps are unclear.

Another thing I didn't like is that the Pakistani name "Azad Kashmir" has been used in several places instead of the accepted Indian nomenclature "POK" or even "POJK" to describe Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

[Sahil Saklany · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kashmir has always been in the news with incidents like terrorist attacks, stone pelting, Article 37O, Separatists, detentions etc. So one must be aware of this topic to present his/her views with logic and knowledge. Also I got mails from some readers to review this book.

The book Kashmir’s Untold story Declassified (authored by Iqbal Chand Malhotra and Maroof Raza) pertains to chain of events or genesis that lead to the situation in what kashmir is now. It tries to present how conflict around Kashmir arose, how it continued even after independence and why it’s still a thorny issue around Indo Pak Relation Nucleus.

The book is divided into 10 chapters which are not up to expectation from renowned authors like them. The first chapter briefly provides the history that Kashmir went through till the rise of Raja Pratap Singh. The role of British is also revealed in interfering in the affairs of state. The next 2 chapters explains the role of British deep state, Raja Hari Singh and Sheikh Abdullah in endangering the political and communal environment of state. Chapter 4, 5, 6 leads us to the road towards Kashmir joining India and treachery of some British officers in helping gilgit agency to rise as separate entity and later to be occupied by Pakistan. Chapter 7 is almost dedicated towards Abdullah’s ambivalent position towards joining Indian side and how it made situation more fragile. With chapter 8, the Chinese aspect and its design in Kashmir has been analysed and rise of terrorist master cells has been presented. Farooq Abdullah entry in politics of Kashmir is discussed and unique rise of Wahhabi Islam shaping the insurgency in coming future is presented in chapter 9. Chapter 10 is more about on how China and Pak alliance have tried to outplay India in many situations and how India should pursue towards its Kashmir policy.

I am really fond of history and especially of such issues which carries so much theories, conspiracies, etc. Though the authors are very big names but the way they have presented this issue in the book looks like a half-hearted attempt in bringing it to the fore front, I guess our news anchors can do a better job than authors.

The title of the book is misleading, there is not much untold or declassified about this book. I am sure you can find more untold story or declassified information about Kashmir via Wikipedia. The major flaw I felt in this book was the author has discussed very little about rise of Insurgency during late 80’s. Also the 1971 India Pak war and how it affected the resolve of Pakistan to attain Kashmir is not discussed. The flow is not smooth. Whenever we discuss any genesis the time flow pattern should be followed unless simultaneous events have ripples in another time frame. The book is very loose on the concept of flow.

I have read some other history books about Kashmir so I can easily analyse and understand what author is trying to infer. But it will be very difficult for those reader who are not well versed to this topic.

Let’s discuss about positive outcomes of reading this book. The thing I liked is that the author has managed to avoid any political inclination in its narration. Secondly, there are some new information that I was not aware of like involvement of British deep state, operation Datta Khel, Zia’s Operation Topac and role of Sikh officer Major Onkar Singh kalkat. Also the role of china in destabilising situation for India has been discussed thoroughly.

Overall the book is not up to the mark for the issue like that. I will not recommend this book to first time readers or readers who are not aware of some basic Kashmir History.

Thank you all for Reading.

[Nidan Basheer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The authors try to reduce this complex regional conflict into a single convenient sweeping narrative by means of heuristic speculation at any signs of ambiguity or uncertainty by ignoring the nuances of the actual history. The script seems more fitting for primetime Indian television than an actual book.

[Amey Chitre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though this book may have some legit observations about a Sino-Pak pincer squeezing the life out of India with a thousand cuts, it is atrociously written. It assumes a ton about the reader’s preexisting knowledge of J&K as well as the region’s history. It is choked with conspiratorial overtones and felt obviously biased just from the language used.

[Sougata Ray · Rating 1 out of 5]

Flow is terrible, you can't comprehend without a monumental effort. Absolutely not a good literature. The diagrams in the book are dark, hard to decipher. Name of the book is misleading, nothing has been declassified, nothing untold is told here. Absolutely nothing new, all these information are available elsewhere also.

[Viku Kuthiala · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book, puts thing in perspective and should be an eye opener for many.

[Meha Jalan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The extreme level of details makes your mind wander

[Sidharth Mishra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very insightful read into the history of Kashmir.

It starts from how the Dogra dynasty ruled Kashmir and how the British engineered divisions within the extended family of the ruling dynasty and gained control while keeping their ties with the erstwhile rulers. It then sheds light into how prior to the independence Sheikh Abdullah gained prominence in the valley while Maharaja Hari Singh in the due course was sidelined. The book then focuses on how there was an interest to have access to the Gilgit agency by the Britishers even post Independence and realising that Jawaharlal Nehru's tilt was towards non-alignment they kind of supported Pakistan more during the 1947-48 war and through their support Pakistan was able to keep up with the area that they captured in J&K. The Gilgit agency was important for the British to keep a tab on the nuclear activity of the USSR.

The book then focuses on how Sheikh Abdullah tried to turn the state into an autocracy and how Article 370 came into being. A major reason why Mao captured Aksai Chin was due to the suggestion of Stalin and the fact that Aksai Chin was a hot bed for very rare materials important for becoming a nuclear state. Then we get to know how relations between Pakistan and China deepened to adversely impact India and to do a greater land grab from J&K. And this is one of the things which is highly ironic because Pakistan during independence got British support as a frontier to stand against communism spreading in Asia.

The book then progresses and shows how Pakistani sponsored agents have deepened terrorism in the Valley, how Sufism has been replaced with Wahhabism and how through coordinated activities of both Pakistan and China, our country has been affected. Apart from natural minerals one of the other important natural resources is fresh water - infact this region is the biggest source of fresh water outside of the poles. Fresh water is something that is of utmost importance in the making of semi-conductors a must have in the race for global dominance.

The book then focuses on the change in stance that has come over the last several years and India being more assertive in not only laying greater claim onto the important resources but also pushing back on unwarranted aggression that is happening because of fresh water and natural minerals.

Overall the book is very fast paced and a good read, however could have been more detailed on certain aspects.

[Sanjay Banerjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book contains a number of otherwise previously classified (or at least unknown) facts about the Kashmir issue - at least not known to me! The narrative about the history of the state from a Buddhist/Hindu kingdom to Muslim rule, how Gulab Singh and his successors colluded with the British and then expanded the contours of the State, the great game etc were new insights. Also new material contained from my perspective were some of the narrative about the tribal incursions, the State’s accession to India, its division between India and Pakistan and the political alignments as well as the insight on China’s interest in access to sand and water for chip making and the attempt to block Indian attempts to build the Kishenganga dam. However, it is difficult to establish the distinction between authors’ perceptions and level of research in some parts. Personally for me, I have high regard for Maroof Raza as a security analyst and would be inclined to give him the benefit of doubt in most parts.

[Rajat Kochhar · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Maroof Raza, and is probably the only reason I watched Times Now. His breadth of knowledge on the issue of Kashmir is unparalleled, which is also reflected in this book. However, the book for some reason is short on construct and flow. It's too many broken pieces which the reader being forced to join the dots. This book, which the number of topics covered, should have been atleast 500pgs long, but in order to make it concise, a lot of the flow and information has been sacrificed. It assumes a lot of knowledge, doesn't elaborate on important incidents, and leaves the reader confused and frustrated for the most part. The maps are in black and white, rendering them useless to the reader who is trying to understand the geography. I had much higher expectations from the book and am disappointed with the final outcome.

[Aurobind Narendran · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting piece in India's statergic objectives in Kashmir

I would actually give it a 3.5 rating. The authors are not natural storytellers and their writing struggles as a result.
I learnt quite a few facts on the british government s interference in Kashmir as well the role of the Chinese in the conflict. The book could have been more fleshed out than it presently is. I felt I should have included or cited a lot more historical sources. It currently reads more like an army man's report than a historical narrative. But it has its merits,it clearly marks out indian statergic objectives and positions . It is also largely a fairhanded , factual book that is interesting to a layman. I just had higher aspiration from this book.

[Bigsna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd hoped this book to be unputdownable, insightful and an all consuming explainer of the Kashmir situation - at least a fresh perspective. But it turned out to be anything but an easy read. While the research appears to be indepth, and it builds right from the time J&K was brought under the Sikh empire, there is just too much to sift through and the writing was extremely bland.

It is understood that anything on Kashmir would be highly complex, I only wish the text was better structured, the writing easier and interesting. It could surely have done with some editing. And what was with those chapter names - each one referencing a sort of water based disaster (lashing waves, swelling crests, emerging ripples, stormy seas...)

[Ashok Atluri · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book giving us the genesis of Kashmir conflict from the time of Alexander to the present times. The book narrates very objectively the events before partition in India and how the British have played a significant role by creating Kashmir conflict to negate the influence of USR on India. Very interesting and informative.

[Gowtham · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Book is Accurate but it's not for a beginner. It's too complicated to get the head around. You have to stop going on the internet and research to understand stuff. It's more of like a textbook than a read.
But as my granddad says "We have been ruled, being ruled and will be ruled by absolute idiots"

[Rahul Verma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The authors bring to the forefront a new perspective dipped in history about Kashmir. What I liked - easy language , good flow , fast paced, known authours
What I did not like: Illustraions and pictures/maps in the book could have been better / larger and printed better .

[CS Muddaiah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a balanced, well researched, factual narrative of Kashmir's history and its players. It's a must read to fully comprehend it's present situation.

[Munish Handa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The details, details, details …. What a lot of them; at times I was at a loss of connecting all the dots of so many details
A well research and thoroughly put up content

[Ibrahim_Rai · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst non fiction book ever read.

[Vineeth Nair · Rating 3 out of 5]

An average read. Covers the pre independence part of history of Kashmir well. There's very less coverage of last two decades and what the future holds.

[SUSHMA BHANSALI · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book

A real eye opener book on Kashmir
Thank you Maroof and IC Malhotra.very deeply researched Book
Highly recommended
Looking forward from these authors more books

[Sovna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gave me new prospective to the daily news about heard about the valley. It gives a clear picture towards everyone's motive. It might be daunting task for many readers to follow if one doesn't know the geography of the land. But i really liked the experience of pointing out the places and get to know history of those.

[Pretty Little Bibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

With that catchy title, the book sure did capture my attention from the very beginning. I was excited to pick up the book and although it was a good enough read for me, I think maybe my expectations were too high going in.
The book roughly covers the time period from the arrival of Alexander until the very recent headlines-making event of the 370 article ruling. For those who did not know, the argument of the secret of the Rozabal Line too will be one of a great shock perhaps.
For the most part, the book read like a cross, somewhere between a historical fiction tale, and a political and/or historical textbook. While it does give a solid base to the history of Kashmir’s ‘origin’, the book, I feel, pretty soon turns towards conspiracies and such theories. It is entertaining, yes, to humour them, but I felt that it moved away from the original course it was supposed to have taken. I also believe that this book has the power to capture the reader’s mind and turn it into the direction the authors want them to take – as a certain blurb says, this book is a pretty “forceful statement of the Indian case in Kashmir” and as such, it was not really very neutral. However, in the larger context, bringing in the relation of China is a pretty powerful move and sheds light on some important situations in the past, and hence, the present as well.
The naming of the various chapters was also done in terms of water, such as Unfathomable Depths, Lashing Waves, Emerging Abyss, Rising Tsunami, etc., and in a way, I really liked that. I feel that these titles really justified the social and political scenario of the times that the chapters were focusing on.

I rate it book a 3.75/5 stars!

[Uday Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every single time when I pick a book that’s based around history or happenings of the society, I form really high expectations from it. The only problem with that is it makes me prone to disappointments. This book was kind of inclined towards that, for me.

Beginning from the narrative, the book feels like a mixture of historical tale with a legal textbook. It begins with the important stories of Kashmir, from its initial establishment but very quickly it turns into a book of theories and conspiracies.

Let me explain, I enjoyed getting to know the facts, figures and major incidents and people impacting Kashmir throughout the history but at the same time I felt that I was sensible enough to understand the points in the context I wanted to understand them in. The book, at several points, with improper adjectives and unexpectedly pointed out questions tries to lead the readers towards specific thoughts and viewpoints.

If you are not reading actively, it can easily grab your mind and guide you through the rest of the book. No non-fiction book is supposed to do that. I highly appreciate the authors’ well-paced and properly researched work. Just like the controversial Kashmir issue, this review isn’t going to be a favourite for many people, but the book could have done justice to the whole story if it wasn’t trying to lead the readers.

If I ignore that and assume that you are an active reader, you should definitely get your hands on this book. The book’s cover and title are already attractive to the mass, so, even after all I’ve said, if read carefully, it can turn out to be an insightful book.

[Rahul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantactic book. The entire history of Kashmir right from Alexander the great till the abrogation of article 370 has been very well captured by the authors. A must read for anybody who is interpreted to understand Kashmir.