October 1947
While addressing a mammoth public meeting at Hazuri Bagh, Srinagar on 1 October 1947, Sher-e-Kashmir, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, had made things about the future of the state obvious when he said, "Till the last drop of my blood, I will not believe in two-nation theory."
On 2 October 1947, the Working Committee of the National Conference met under Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah's presidentship and took the decision to support the accession to India but Maharaja Hari Singh wanted to remain independent.
A large number of tribals from Pakistan attacked Kashmir under the code name "Operation Gulmarg" to seize Kashmir. The invading tribals started moving alongRawalpindi-Murree-Muzaffarabad-Baramulla Road on 22 October 1947 with Pakistani army men in plain clothes. Muzaffarabad fell on 24 October 1947. They reached and captured Baramulla on 25 October. There they stayed for several days looting, raping, killing, burning, plundering and desecrating and vandalising shrines and temples instead of moving on toSrinagar just 50 km away and capture its airfield which was not defended at all. They raped and killed European nuns (only one survived) at Baramulla's St. Joseph convent and Christian nurses at the missionary hospital. This savage orgy of loot, rape, murder and abduction of girls continued for several days. Baramulla suffered this savage orgy but saved the rest of Kashmir because the airplanes carrying the Indian troops airlifted from Delhi on the morning of 27 October could land at Srinagar airfield as the invaders were still at Baramulla.
Charles Chevenix Trench writes in his 'The Frontier Scouts' (1985):
In October 1947... tribal lashkars hastened in lorries - undoubtedly with official logistic support - into Kashmir... at least one British Officer, Harvey-Kelly took part in the campaign. It seemed that nothing could stop these hordes of tribesmen taking Srinagar with its vital airfield. Indeed nothing did, but their
