Text of Telegram dated December 16, 1947 from the Prime Minister of Pakistan to the Prime Minister of India
Text of Telegram dated December 16, 1947 from the Prime Minister of Pakistan to the Prime Minister of India
"Your Telegram No. Primin 448 dated 12th December.
As you know, I am most desirous for a settlement of all matters in dispute between India and Pakistan. So are my colleagues. And I agree with you that the major issue outstanding between the two Dominions is Kashmir and, as I pointed out before also, Junagadh. During our discussions in Delhi and Lahore I explained to you how vital a place Kashmir occupies in relation to Pakistan. The security of Pakistan is bound up with that of Kashmir, and the ties of religion, cultural affinity and economic interdependence bind the two together still closer. The security and well-being of the people of Kashmir is of the highest importance to the people of Pakistan. We are, therefore, vitally interested in peaceful and honourable conditions for the people of Kashmir so that freed from all pressure, external or internal, they might of their own free will decide to which Dominion they wish to accede. The test of any course of action should therefore be whether it leads to the creation of conditions in which a really free plebiscite can be held. To my mind, the problem can only be solved by an act of statesmanship in the light of the basic realities of the situation and not by any legal disputations as how Pakistan is a party to the dispute or how U.N.O. can be brought in. I hope when we meet on the 22nd December we shall be able to discuss the matter in this spirit.
Many thanks for your enquiry about my health. I'm feeling better now."