When Muslim rule in Kashmir ended in 1820, Sikh and later Hindu Dogra Rulers gained power, but the country was still largely influenced by Sunni religious orthodoxy. This book traces the impact of Sunni power on Shi'i society and how this changed during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The book identifies a distinctive Kashmiri Shi'i Islam established during this period. Hakim Sameer Hamdani argues that the Shi'i community's religious and cultural identity was fostered through practices associated with the martyrdom of Imam Husayn and his family in Karbala, as well as other rituals of Islam, in particular, the construction and furore surrounding M'arak, the historic imambada (a Shi'i house for mourning of the Imam) of Kashmir's Shi'i. The book examines its destruction, the ensuing Shi'i -Sunni riot, and the reasons for the Shi'i community's internal divisions and rifts at a time when they actually saw the strong consolidation of their identity.

Many disenchanted Kashmiris continue to demand independence or freedom from India. Written by a leading authority on Kashmir’s troubled past, this book revisits the topic of independence for the region (also known as Jammu and Kashmir, or J&K), and explores exactly why this aspiration has never been fulfilled. In a rare India-Pakistan agreement, they concur that neither J&K, nor any part of it, can be independent. Charting a complex history and intense geo-political rivalry from Maharaja Hari Singh’s leadership in the mid-1920s to the present, this book offers an essential insight into the disputes that have shaped the region. As tensions continue to rise following government-imposed COVID-19 lockdowns, Snedden asks a vital question: what might independence look like and just how realistic is this aspiration?

The British Considered India As 'The Brightest Jewel In The British Crown', Hence Were Very Solicitous Of Its Safety And Security. The Galloping Russian Empire Generated Fears Of Advancement Of Russia In Northern India. The Thinking In The Foreign Office Gained Ground That The Tight Control Over Kashmir Was The Only Panacia To Stem The Tide Of The Russian Expansion.The British Imperialists Realizing Their Folly In Selling Kashmir To Maharaja Gulabsingh In 1848 Tried To Bring It Under Their Sphere Of Influence By All Possible Means. But Because Of The Strong Personality Of Maharaja Ranbir Singh They Could Not Establish Their Agency In The Border Area Of Gilgit. The Death Of Maharaja Ranbir Singh Was A Windfall For Them. By Engineer¬Ing Court Intrigues Between Pratap Singh And Amar Singh For Succession To The Throne, They Managed To Depose Pratap Singh And Instal Amar Singh As The President Of The Council Which Ostensibly Was Working Under The Dictates Of President Through Fraud And Forgery.The Book Brings To Light The Machinations Employed By The British Rulers Of India In Maintaining Their Paramountcy Over The Princely States. It Therefore Constitutes A Valuable Addition To The History Of The British Rule In India.

In 1846, the British created the state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) - popularly called "Kashmir" - and then quickly sold this prized region to the wily and powerful Raja, Gulab Singh. Intriguingly, had they retained it, the India-Pakistan dispute over possession of the state may never have arisen, but Britain's concerns lay elsewhere -- expansionist Russia, beguiling Tibet and unstable China "circling" J&K -- and their agents played the 'Great Game' in Afghanistan and 'Turkistan'. Snedden contextualizes the geo-strategic and historical circumstances surrounding the British decision to relinquish prestigious 'Kashmir', and explains how they and four Dogra maharajas consolidated and controlled J&K subsequently. He details what comprised this diverse princely state with distant borders and disunified peoples and explains the Maharaja of J&K's controversial accession to India on 26 October 1947 - and its unintended consequences. Snedden weaves a compelling narrative that frames the Kashmir dispute, explains why it continues, and assesses what it means politically and administratively for the divided peoples of J&K and their undecided futures.