The State of Jammu & Kashmir is “a Hindu State, situated in Muslim surroundings”, Vallabhbhai Patel wrote to one C. Parmeswaram of Kashmir Metal Mart on 19 June 1946 (Sardar Patel’s Correspondence; Vol. 1, p.4). On its accession to secular India, the State lost its Hindu personality. As Prime Minister of the State, Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah did the rest, earning Patel’s hostility, of the communal ruler Hari Singh and his followers in Jammu, the Praja Parishad. The BJP is its descendant. But, remnants of what was an admittedly Hindu State…
Read MoreThe Beef Issue and Kashmir’s Identity
