International Journal of Social Science Research (IJSSR)

Between Independence and Accession: Analyzing Maharaja Hari Singh’s Political Calculations in 1947

In 1947, the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, led by Maharaja Hari Singh, navigated a fraught path between joining India or Pakistan or remaining independent. This study examines his political calculations during that critical period. It analyzes primary sources such as Hari Singh’s correspondence with Lord Mountbatten and contemporary reports, alongside scholarship by historians like Hewitt, Schofield, Bose, and Snedden. Initially, Maharaja Hari Singh sought a neutral, independent status for Kashmir – even describing it as a potential “Switzerland of the East” – and pursued standstill agreements with both new dominions. However, mounting pressures – including internal unrest in Poonch and the Kashmiri National Conference, a Pakistani-instigated blockade and tribal invasion, and intense diplomatic pressure from India – eroded this stance. By late October 1947, facing an existential threat from armed raiders, Hari Singh capitulated. He signed the Instrument of Accession to India on 26 October 1947, conditioning India’s military aid on accession. This paper traces these developments in detail, situating the Maharaja’s decisions in their political and historical context.