logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2019
9m 4s

The division of Kashmir

Bbc World Service
About this episode

In October 1947, an invasion of Kashmir by tribal fighters led to the division of the state between India and Pakistan. Andrew Whitehead speaks to victims of the invasion and political leaders in Kashmir to find out more about the roots of a crisis that endures to this day.

PHOTO: Indian troops arriving in Kashmir in October 1947 (Getty Images)

Up next
Apr 2025
The Cu Chi tunnels of the Vietnam War
During the Vietnam War, North Vietnamese VietCong guerrillas built a vast network of tunnels in the south of the country as part of the insurgency against the South Vietnamese government and their American allies. The tunnel network was a key base and shelter for the North Vietna ... Show More
9m 43s
Jan 30
Ötzi: The Iceman of Bolzano
In September 1991, two German hikers found a dead body while walking through Europe’s Ötzal Alps. It turned out to be a perfectly preserved 5,000-year-old mummy. The archaeologist Konrad Spindler inspected the body along with the assemblage of items recovered from the gravesite. ... Show More
9m 11s
Jan 29
The Kaohsiung Incident
On 10 December 1979, pro-democracy activists clashed with police in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.The incident, which happened during Taiwan's martial law period, paved the way for the transition to democracy.Rachel Naylor speaks to Yao Chia-wen, who was jailed for 12 years for his involveme ... Show More
10m 25s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2019
Kashmir: Why India and Pakistan fight over it
Is the India/Pakistan dispute over Kashmir the most dangerous conflict in the world? Well, you can make a strong case for it since both nations are armed with nuclear warheads. Today we go over the history of the Indo-Pakistani conflict and what led to the tensions over Kashmir. ... Show More
1h 39m
Aug 2014
Partition
British India was divided into two new independent countries - India and Pakistan - in August 1947. But millions of people found themselves on the wrong side of the new borders. Witness speaks to the veteran Indian journalist Kuldip Nayar about Partition.Picture: Kuldip Nayar (ri ... Show More
8m 56s
Feb 2019
Can India and Pakistan step back from the brink?
Pakistan and India are facing their worst conflict in almost half a century after an Indian military jet was shot down over disputed Kashmir territory and an Indian fighter pilot was captured by Pakistani forces. Gideon Rachman discusses what happens next with the FT's Amy Kazmin ... Show More
16m 36s
Aug 2021
India-Pakistan love stories
Ever since partition in 1947, India and Pakistan have been locked in conflict. Often, the two nations are in the news for increasing hostilities along the Line of Control, the de facto border that divides disputed Kashmir. The two countries have a shared history and similar cultu ... Show More
27m 3s
Apr 2022
The Foundations of Modern India
<p>The greatest anti-imperial rebellion of the nineteenth century, The Indian Rebellion of 1857, witnessed mass violence against the British. Ninety years later, Indian freedom was founded on a deadly fratricide that singularly spared the outgoing masters. As a result, India’s fo ... Show More
25m 46s
Jul 2023
#CutTheClutter: As Junagadh nawab Jahangir Khan dies, abridged Ep 541 on Pakistan’s claim over former princely state
#icymi On 5 August 2020, Pakistan released a political map that laid claim to the erstwhile Junagadh princely state, now in Gujarat, and listed Jammu and Kashmir as disputed territory. In Ep 541 of #CutTheClutter, originally published on 5 August 2020, Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gup ... Show More
24m 6s
Jul 2022
The partition of India: everything you wanted to know
For the latest in our everything you want to know series, historian Dr Anwesha Roy revisits the 1947 partition of India, which divided British-ruled India into two independent countries. In conversation with Rob Attar she explains how India came to be divided and considers why th ... Show More
34m 36s
Mar 2023
Meeting the Mughals: England’s disastrous first embassy to India
In 1616, when the first English embassy was installed in Mughal India, England was a minor player on the global stage rather than a leading actor. Nandini Das explores what the challenges of this embassy can tell us about England’s unequal relationship with India at the time – an ... Show More
34m 54s