Why India returned Haji Pir Pass to Pakistan after capturing it in 1965

India Today

5 days ago

"In the 1965 India-Pakistan War, our forces had recaptured the Haji Pir Pass from Pakistan, but the Congress later returned it," PM Narendra Modi said in the Lok Sabha this week. In his two-hour-long speech, Prime Minister Modi launched a scathing attack on the Congress leadership, which had been trying to corner the government over the alleged lack of political will and operational freedom to the armed forces during Operation Sindoor. Hitting back at the Congress, Modi reminded it of the return of the Haji Pir Pass to Pakistan, along with other alleged blunders, including the release of 90,000 Pakistani soldiers after the 1971 War, to target the Grand Old Party.advertisementDuring the 1965 India-Pakistan war, India captured the strategically important Haji Pir Pass and the entire Haji Pir bulge from Pakistan after a daring military operation.However, just months later, it was returned to Pakistan under the Tashkent Agreement, which sparked long-standing criticism of the decision, including from some men in uniform involved in claiming the pass.
"The [Haji Pir] Pass would have given India a definite strategic advantage. It was a mistake to hand it back. Our people don't read maps," Lieutenant General Ranjit Singh Dayal (retired), the hero of the Battle for Haji Pir (then a Major), said in a 2002 interview.HOW INDIA CAPTURED THE HAJI PIR PASS IN 1965The Haji Pir Pass, located at 2,637 metres in the Pir Panjal range, has been a key land route and was a major infiltration route even during the 1947 mujahideen incursion.In 1965, Pakistan, under its Operation Gibraltar, aimed at inciting rebellion in Kashmir, pushed in infiltrators into the Valley.On August 15, 1965, Indian forces crossed the Ceasefire Line to counter Pakistani shelling and infiltration. The operation, codenamed Bakshi, involved a pincer movement by the 19th Infantry Division, with 1 Para, led by Major Ranjit Singh Dayal.The Indian Army captured Sank by August 27 after a nightlong trek by soldiers in heavy rain.By 10.30 AM on August 28, Dayal's team outflanked the Pakistani defenders, and secured the Haji Pir pass. The victory shortened the Poonch-Uri route from 282 km to 56 km, and enhanced India's logistical control.The pass, when under Indian control, also had the potential to seal the natural gap used by infiltrators for future incursions, but the control was short-lived.1965, - , pic.twitter.com/uycLdhS55k— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) September 22, 2017INDIA RELINQUISHED HAJI PIR PASS, RETURNED MORE TERRITORYThe Tashkent Declaration, signed on January 10, 1966, and mediated by the USSR, ended the 1965 war.It mandated both India and Pakistan to withdraw from their pre-August 5, 1965, positions by February 25, 1966.advertisementIndia, under the terms of the Tashkent Agreement, relinquished the Haji Pir Pass and 1,920 square kilometres of captured territory, while Pakistan returned 550 sq km, including Chhamb, according to reports."The both sides will exert all efforts to create good neighbourly relations between India and Pakistan in accordance with the United Nations Charter. They reaffirm their obligation under the Charter not to have recourse to force and to settle their disputes through peaceful means. They considered that the interests of peace in their region and particularly in the Indo-Pakistan Sub-Continent and, indeed, the interests of the peoples of India and Pakistan were not served by the continuance of tension between the two countries. It was against this background that Jammu and Kashmir was discussed, and each of the sides set forth its respective position," said the Tashkent, without naming the Haji Pir Pass.The agreement aimed to restore peace but lacked a no-war pact or measures against guerrilla warfare, which is fueling criticism in India to this day.INDIA'S RETURN OF HAJI PIR ROOTED IN STRATEGIC CALCULATIONSIndia's decision to return to Haji Pir was driven by the need to secure Pakistani withdrawal from Chhamb, near the Akhnoor bridge, a critical supply line.advertisement"When negotiations commenced in January 1966 between India and Pakistan under the aegis of the Soviet Union, India had to view the threat posed by Pakistani dagger into the Indian heart in the Chhamb Sector. Since Pakistani forces had already reached Fatwal ridge only four kilometres from Akhnoor, they could always resume operations for capture of Akhnoor," Major General Sheru Thapliyal (retired) noted in his 2015 piece in the Strategic Study India portal.The Chhamb sector, a flat, open terrain west of the Munnawar Tawi River, is also a critical defensive outpost for India. Its proximity to the Akhnoor bridge, roughly 20 km away, makes it vital for securing the only all-weather road linking Jammu to Poonch and the Kashmir Valley.Journalist Kuldip Nayar, part of PM Shastri's entourage, claimed Soviet pressure and threats to withhold UN veto support on Kashmir influenced the decision of the prime minister, who died the next day in suspicious circumstances.Critics, including Lieutenant General Dayal (retired), argued that retaining Haji Pir would have curtailed infiltration, which continues through the pass today."If we had retained the post, things could have been different," Lieutenant General DB Shekatkar (retired) told Rediff India News in 2015.advertisementThe return, seen as a strategic blunder, has been criticised by experts and stakeholders who noted it enabled ongoing Pakistani infiltration and undermined India's long-term security in Kashmir.That's exactly what PM Modi pointed out, reminding the Congress of the realpolitik and strategic give-and-take that played out back then, and possibly continues to do so even today.- Ends