Official history of liberation: Ian Stephens, the man – made responsible by President Ayub Khan to compile the official history of Pakistan – describes the relevant history as follows:
“This was not locally liked, but it was tolerated in the belief that, as Kashmir was a Muslim majority state, the Maharajah, despite his personal will, would soon act along the lines of Lord Mountbatton’s advice to the Princes generally in July, and accede to Pakistan. When the startling news came on 26 October of the Maharajah’s accession of Kashmir to India, the locals of Gilgit were outraged and so were the Muslim officers posted to Gilgit scouts and a few to the Maharajah’s army located at Bunji. Mullahs in the villages started preaching ‘JEHAD’ against the Dogra regime. Reports came that the neighboring Princely states of Swat and Chitral, which had joined Pakistan, were about to invade; Muslim soldier in the predominantly Sikh garrison at Bunji, on the far side of Indus, caused a disturbance; on the other hand, local Sikh and Hindu traders in Gilgit Bazaar were known to have arms. By the evening of 31 October, tension locally became such that, in the scout commandant’s view mutiny and slaughter, resulting in general chaos, could only be forestalled by prompt acceptance of what unquestionably was the prevailing popular will. He therefore sent a platoon to request the Hindu Governor to come to the Scout’s lines for protection and simultaneously ordered his colleague (Captain Matheson) detachments from Chilas (headed by Subedar Sher Ali of Yasin), as well as those from Gilgit (headed by Subedar Safiullah Beg) to hold the Indus River Crossings and prevent 6th Kashmir Infantry troops from Bunji getting over to Gilgit and undo the coup.
Some casualties ensued at the crossings and indeed on the Gilgit Residency’s moonlit lawns too, because the governor resisted custody and fired on the scouts and their sympathizers from his windows, killing one soldier from Hunza. But within a few hours, the affair was effectively over; and on 2nd November the Pakistan Flag was run up amidst public acclaims”.
The Mirs and the Governors of the Political Districts exercised their option to accede to Pakistan [obviously in consonance with the wishes of the populations] their territories and communicated the same either in writing or verbally to Major William Brown, Commandant GILGIT SCOUTS – obvious authority in Gilgit at that time – who in turn communicated it through wireless messages to Khan Abdul Qayyum Khan, the Prime Minister [CM] NWFP Peshawar as well as Col Bacon PA Khyber [the last British Political Agent in Gilgit] with an additional request to post a Pakistan Government Political Agent expeditiously.
Quaid-e-Azam accepted the accession and asked the Prime Minister to issue “a simplified Instrument of Accession” on the 6th of November 1947 – see MOST IMMEDIATE minute no 380-G initiated by Liagat Ali Khan. Mir of Hunza, Jamal Khan as well as Mir of Nagar, Shaukat Ali Khan, signed this instrument on 19th November 1947.
Further parleys with the delegations from the region in 1950 resulted in continuation of the administrative structure of an Agency which continued till 1974. Ever since different options have been instituted by GOP.
On 29 August 2009 the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan announced the creation of Gilgit–Baltistan, a new province-like autonomous region with Gilgit city as its capital and Skardu as the largest city. A sizable number of young generation activists are however not satisfied and raise their voices for a vigorous constitutional status – some even demanding cessation and independence.
Thus Major Alexander Brown ‑ British commandant of Gilgit Scouts ‑ in the light of popular will of the people in general (and with the help of the dissatisfied group of five junior commissioned officers from Hunza and Nager in particular), compensated for the machinations perpetrated by his fellow British in the past. The officer, for these services, has belatedly been honored by the government of Pakistan after his death, by awarding Sitara‑e‑Pakistan in 1993. Consequently Gilgit acceded to Pakistan and Sardar Alam Khan arrived as the first Political Agent from Pakistan.
Version of an Indian author:
THE FALL OF GILGIT
Lt. Col KS Samyal (Retd)
The entire north-west of the Indian sub-continent was, in the autumn of 1947, aflame with communal riots. In October 1947, the disturbances spread to the State of Jammu and Kashmir also. The Gilgit area of the state had an overwhelmingly Muslim population, made up of turbulent hill-men. The position was complicated by the existence of the semi-feudal principalities of Chitral, Hunza, Nagar etc which had been brought under Dogra rule in the 19th Century.
In July 1947, Gilgit was still being administered by the Government of India, to whom it had been made over by the State Government on lease for 60 years. The departure of the British from India being imminent, it was decided to terminate this lease and hand Gilgit back to the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir. Late in July 1947, the State Government appointed Brig Ghansara Singh, one of the most senior officers of the State’s Force, to be the Governor of Gilgit. He flew to Gilgit on 30 July 1947 and took over the administration from Lt Col Bacon, the British Political Agent, on 01 August 1947.
The local people, even though overwhelmingly Muslim, joyously welcomed the return of the Maharaja’s administration after the period of British rule. Of the subordinate chiefs under the Governor of Gilgit, namely, the Mir of Hunza, the Mir of Nagar, the Raja of Punial, and the chieftains of Koh Ghizar, Yasin, and Ashkoman, only the Mirs of Hunza and Nagar were hostile.
Their hostility proved very damaging, for three-fourths of the men of the Gilgit Scouts came from Hunza and Nagar, and Subedar Major Babar Khan of the Scouts was the uncle of the Mir of Nagar and had married the sister of the Mir of Hunza.
The two British officers of the Gilgit Scouts whose services had been retained by the State, namely Major WA Brown and Captain Matheson, proved themselves inveterately hostile to Jammu & Kashmir State and took the leading part in the pro-Pakistan treachery at Gilgit. The predominantly Muslim civil employees of the Government of Gilgit were also pro-Pakistan and they backed the demands of the Scouts for special rates of pay and other concessions for serving the Jammu & Kashmir State soon after Brig Ghansara Singh took over charge.
It should be noted, however, that the Gilgit Scouts and the local people were still free from the violent communal passions then sweeping through the Punjab and did not favor killing or converting by force the non-Muslims at Gilgit.
Not the State’s own Muslim troops. Gilgit area was garrisoned by 6 J&K Infantry, less than two companies with Headquarters at Bunji, about 54 kms from Gilgit on the road to Srinagar. Commanded by Lt. Col Abdul Majid Khan, the battalion was composed of Muslims and Sikhs in almost equal proportions. The Sikhs, according to the Commanding Officer, were raw recruits and were not fit for active duty for the next 5-6 months, till they had fired their musketry course. The Muslim companies had men from Punch and they having heard all about the horrible communal killings in Punjab, were in a violently communal frame of mind.
Wild rumors raged in Gilgit in the last week of October when the tribal invasion of Kashmir began. The common people remained friendly, but there was clear evidence that Major Brown and Sub Major Babar Khan of the Scouts were planning some trouble. Some locals advised the Governor to call up 6 J&K Infantry from Bunji, but Brig Ghansara Singh realised that State Force’s Muslim men were as disaffected as and more violent than the Scouts. The Sikhs of 6 J&K Infantry could not be called up due to the opposition of Lt. Col Abdul Majid Khan, the Commanding Officer.
At about midnight between 31 October-1 November 1947, about 100 men of the Gilgit Scouts, led by Major Brown, Lieut Haidar Khan and Sub Major Babar Khan, surrounded the Governor’s house and tried to steal in to capture him in sleep. He woke up, however, and started using his revolver, backed up by his orderly and driver who were handed a double-barrel shotgun and a sporting rifle.
The Scouts then opened machine gun fire on the house. Exchange of fire went on for several hours, and two men of the Gilgit Scouts were killed. Morning came, and with it a message from Major Brown asking Brigadier Ghansara Singh to surrender or else all non-Muslims in Gilgit would be killed. The Governor surrendered and was put under arrest.
The local people protested against this, and villagers from the surrounding areas began to gather in Gilgit. The Scouts’ leaders managed to pacify them and sent them away, but probably this demonstration of the people’s affection saved the Governor and other non-Muslims from being murdered in cold blood. Lt Col Abdul Majid Khan, the CO of 6 J&K Infantry, was also imprisoned by the Gilgit Scouts and their British officers.
Immediately after this, steps were taken by the conspirators to annihilate the Sikh troops at Bunji. A Sikh post at Janglot was treacherously attacked at night by Muslim troops of 6 J&K Infantry and the Gilgit Scouts and the entire garrison was killed, except for a lone survivor who managed to cross the icy Indus river on a log of wood.
On hearing the news from Gilgit and Janglot, the Sikh company at Bunji dispersed and the men tried to find their way out to Gurais via Astor. But the Scouts from Chilas under the personal command of Captain Matheson were already guarding that route and prevented all escape. The Sikhs wandered through the high, snow-covered mountains for days without food and were captured one by one.
The entire Gilgit region passed into the hands of Pakistan early in November 1947. At first a provisional Government was formed, of which the leaders were Major Brown, Captain Hassan, Captain Ehsan Ali, Captain Muhammad Khan, Captain Sayeed, Lieut Haidar, and Sub Major Babar Khan. It is notable that none of the local Rajas nor any member of the public was included in the Provisional Government.
On 3 November 1947, Major Brown held a flag hoisting ceremony at Gilgit in the Socut Lines. After about a fortnight, one Sardar Mohammad Alam, a Pathan and obviously a nominee of Pakistan, came from Peshawar and took over the administration as Political Agent at Gilgit. No “Azad Govt” was established there, even in name.
But the control of Gilgit areas enabled Pakistan to operate towards Gurais as well as to attack Skardu.
K S Samyal,
J&K Ex-services League,
Ambphalla,
Jammu – 180005.
Telex-0191-2564326
Gilgit Baltistan Scouts identify themselves with Gilgit Scouts which were raised in 1889. This force played a key role in fighting the war of liberation against Dogra / Indian Forces in 1947/1948 and won independence for the people of Northern Areas (now Gilgit Baltistan). Gilgit Scouts were further reinforced by raising of Northern and Karakorum Scouts. These three Corps of Scouts subsequently merged in 1974 to form Northern Light Infantry (NLI) Units.
After the Kargil conflict, in 1999 the Northern Light Infantry Units were given the status of regular Army. The need of having Civil Armed Force in the Northern Areas remained a constant demand of the people since 1974. NA Scouts, therefore emerged as 5th Civil Armed Force of Pakistan on 31 October 2003.
With the imposition of “Empowerment and Self Governance Order” in 2009, Northern Areas were given the name of Gilgit Baltistan. Consequently Northern Area Scouts being a Federal Civil Armed Force in this region was also renamed as Gilgit Baltistan Scouts on 17 January 2011.
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