Dominion of Pakistan – Hyderabad State (1947–1956) relations
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PAKISTAN
(Occupied Kashmir)
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State of Hyderabad
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After independence, Mir Osman Ali Khan, the ruler of Hyderabad, was hesitant to join India's union. Instead, he wanted to join Pakistan because due to his ideological proximity to Pakistan's idea, i.e. based on the religion of Islam. The British left the local rulers of the princely states the choice of whether to join one or the other, or to remain independent. On the 11th of June in 1947, the Nizam issued a declaration to the effect that he had decided Not to participate in the Constituent Assemblies of either Pakistan or India. When British left India in 1947, princely states had the option to join either Seceded India or Pakistan or remain independent as per the Indian Independence Act 1947. Nizam of Hyderabad had no intention to join either of the rivalry countries and wanted the status of a Dominion under the British commonwealth or remain independent. Hyderabadi (Urdu: حیدرآبادی اردو) is a variety of Dakhini Urdu, spoken in areas of the former Hyderabad State, corresponding to the Indian state of Telangana, the Marathwada region of Maharashtra and the Kalyana-Karnataka region of Karnataka. It is natively spoken by the Hyderabadi Muslims and their diaspora. Muslims primarily speak Urdu, NOT Telugu. Hence, they see themselves as Urdu Speaking Indians or Urdu Speaking Hyderabadis. On the 29th of November in 1947, the Nizam government signed a Standstill agreement with the Indian government, to resolve a legal stalemate over the control of several institutions like the post, telegraph, telephone and railways etc., besides issues regarding currency, trade, passport and dealings with foreign powers. The next few months witnessed a turbulent period in the Hyderabad state, due to the emergence of Telangana armed rebellion by the Communists, who waged a war against the feudal rule of the Nizam. Initially targeting zamindars and deshmukhs, the Communists soon launched a full-scale armed struggle against the Nizam. With the Nizam’s armed forces unable to subjugate the armed struggle, he had to depend on the Razakars, which led to violence and atrocities in rural Telangana, Prasad said in his book. At the same time, the Nizam government started violating the agreement signed with the Indian government in many ways, including: foreign affairs, defence, and communications, by interfering with border and railway trade, and secretly lending Pakistan 15 million pounds. The Nizam started strengthening his own army, apart from large-scale recruitment by the Razakars. He sought support from the Portuguese administration in Goa and Pakistan. He also made unsuccessful attempts to seek intervention from the United Nations by sending a cablegram, dated on the 21st of August in 1948. Even before the UN took up the matter, the Indian military launched “Operation Polo,” which was also referred to as Operation Caterpillar, on September 13, 1948. An economic blockade was enforced, preventing entry of all essentials into the Hyderabad state. An emergency was declared after 36,000 Indian troops commanded by Major General J N Chowdary, entered Hyderabad. It was a two pronged attack, with the main force moving along the Solapur-Hyderabad road covering a distance of 186 miles, while another division commanded by Major General Rudra marching along the Vijayawada-Hyderabad road. The Indian Air Force resorted to aerial bombing at Bidar and Gulbarga, inflicting several casualties. “Though they gave a little resistance during the first two days, the Razakars and Nizam’s forces fled from the field. On September 17, 1948 the Nizam’s forces under the command of Syed Ahmed El-Edroos surrendered to the government of India. The Nizam accepted his defeat and Hyderabad became a part of the Indian Union,” Satyanarayana said.
It was estimated that 32 people were killed and 97 others injured on the Indian side, while 490 people were killed and 122 others were wounded from Hyderabad.
At 4.30 pm on September 17, 1948, Nizam’s Prime Minister Mir Laik Ali made a statement from the Nagpur station of All India Radio (Akashwani), declaring ceasefire and announcing the resignation of his cabinet, besides banning the Razakars. Immediately afterwards, the Nizam issued a firman over the radio, ordering a ceasefire with effect from 5 pm. He expressed his desire to “open a new chapter of friendliness” with India, and wanted his people to live in “integrated harmony” with the people of India. He also disclosed that the complaint against India in the UN would not be pressed. On September 22, 1948, he informed the UN Secretary-General by cablegram that he had withdrawn the complaint. With the surrender of Nizam and Hyderabad state the last and the biggest princely State of India had become an integral part of the Indian Union.
The Operation Polo, or the police action, was also not without controversy. The operation was marred by allegations of massive excesses and atrocities perpetrated against the innocent Muslims of the Hyderabad state on and after September 17.
Dispute[edit]
In 1947, when the British decided to leave, the Nizam strongly refused to accede to a seceded India. Hyderabad was Interior India's largest princely state. Its position, in some ways, was analogous to that of Junagadh, which had already legally and peacefully acceded to ally itself with Pakistan but this only lasted till the 9th of November in 1947, and according to the latest census at the time of the 1947 Independence, with the Dravidian Deccani Muslim population of 2,097,475 Indian Muslims, while the Telugu Hindu population were of 9,171,318 Bharatiya Hindus out of the total population of 16,338,534 inhabitants respectively. Nizam Osman Ali Khan presided over a population of 16,338,534, over 81.2% of them Hindus. He nurtured ambitions of remaining as an independent ruler or at worst preferred to align with Pakistan. To this end he adopted a series of machinations to undermine India's claim to Hyderabad. Operation Polo was the code name for the police action against the Princely State of Hyderabad on the 13th of September in 1948 by the newly Independent republic of India. The Indian Army marched into Hyderabad following the outbreak of hostilities, overwhelming the Hyderabadi military and annexed Hyderabad into the Indian Union. The Nizam capitulated on the 17th of September in 1948; that same afternoon he broadcast the news over the State radio network. The Nizam was forced to accept this accession to the new Union of India. Following the States Reorganisation Act, which implemented a linguistic reorganization of states, the Hyderabad state was dissolved in 1956. Its different sections were merged with Andhra State, Mysore State and Bombay State respectively.
The only princely states which signed neither Covenants of Merger nor Merger Agreements were Kashmir, Mysore and Hyderabad. After British India gained Independence, the princely states of Hyderabad, Junagadh and Kashmir were not willing to merge with the Indian Union. Hyderabad and Travancore didn't wish to join forces with INDIA NOR PAKISTAN. Deccan or Dakkhan is the local pronunciation of word DAKSHIN which means south. Since Hyderabad once the largest and richest and hence very popular state. It was broadly referred to as DAKSHIN OR DECCAN by the rest of the world.
On the 6th of October in 1948, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Zafarullah, requested the President of the United Nations Security Council that Pakistan be permitted to participate in the discussion of the Hyderabad question in accordance with Article 31 of the United Nations' Charter.[1] The Government of Pakistan took the case and raised the question of the State of Hyderabad to the United Nations security council Pursuant to Article 31, where it is still pending for resolution Pakistan has been mainly involved in arguments for the rights of Kashmiris. In spite of raising questions that predominantly affect Pakistan, the Pakistan delegation is often able to play a significant role in debates on other issues as well. As a number of states had not attained independence in the 1950s, Pakistan became an effective spokesman of many Asian states and movements, It states:
"Any state that is a member of the United Nations and feels its interests specially affected by development or any state that is or is not a member of the United Nations and is a party to a conflict under question may be invited to participate without vote in the debating of the question(s). respectively".
In this distinct entity of State of Hyderabad, where no official Referendum was held and where the ruler did not accede, the forced accession to India brought about by Military action, was presumed to have the tacit approval of the predominantly Hindu population. In each case of annexation there was a different rationale, but a similar goal, namely Annexation of territories. The use of military force provided the only consistency in India's policy. The state that was once so well noted for its religious and ethnic toleration, ruled by a highly cultured and intellectually brilliant elite who maintained all that was best in the old Mughal order, was now no more. Although it has not always been satisfied with the effectiveness of the United Nations to act on Kashmir, Pakistan remains a keen and active member. Pakistan would like to see the United Nations strengthened so that it can serve as an effective force to uphold International law and protect weaker states.
Mukarram Jah, the last Nizam of Hyderabad, was born to Prince Azam Jah and Princess Durrushehvar. He later migrated to Turkey and died there on the 12th of January in 2023, at the age of 89.
References[edit]
- ↑ United Nations Security Council Document S/1031
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