Poonch District, Pakistan

For Poonch district administered by India, see Poonch district, India.

Poonch District (Urdu: ضلع پونچھ ) is a district of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.^[1] It is one of the 10 districts of this Pakistan-administered territory. It is bounded on the north by Bagh District, on the north-east by Haveli District, on the south-east by the Poonch District of Indian-administered Kashmir, on the south by Azad Kashmir's Sudhanoti and Kotli districts, and on the west by Rawalpindi District of Pakistan's Punjab Province. The Poonch District is part of the greater Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. The district headquarters is the city of Rawalakot. It is the third most populous district of Azad Kashmir.^[4][5]

Poonch District ضلع پونچھ
District of Azad Kashmir administered by Pakistan[1]
top: Poonch Valley bottom:Tolipir
Interactive map of Poonch district
A map showing Poonch district shaded in Yellow along with Sudhanoti district
Coordinates (Rawalakot): 33°51′12″N 73°45′5″E
Administering Country	Pakistan
Territory	Azad Kashmir
Division	Poonch Division
Headquarters	Rawalakot
Government
• Type	District Administration
• Deputy Commissioner	N/A
• District Police Officer	N/A
• District Health Officer	N/A
Area
• Total	855 km2 (330 sq mi)
Population  (2017)[2]
• Total	500,571
Languages
• Official	Urdu[3]
• Spoken	Pahari-Pothwari
Number of Tehsils	4

The main language is Pahari, native to an estimated 95% of the population, but there are also speakers of Gujari,^[6] while Urdu has official status.

Map of Azad Kashmir with the Poonch District highlighted in red

History

Sovereign State

Around 850CE, Poonch became a sovereign state ruled by Raja Nar. According to Rajatrangani, Raja Trilochanpal of Poonch resisted Mahmood Ghaznavi who invaded Poonch 1020. Ghaznavi failed to enter Kashmir, as he could not capture the fort of Lohara (modern day Loran, in district of Poonch).^[7]

Mughal Era (1596 - 1752)

In 1596, Mughal emperor Jahangir made Siraj-Ud-Din the ruler of Poonch. The Mughals were the rulers of Poonch until 1752.

Durrani Empire (1752–1819)

Under the leadership of Ahmad Shah Abdali, the Durrani Afghans conquered Kashmir, taking advantage of the declining Mughal Empire. They thus obtained control of Poonch, and established their government in the region. They ruled the region until 1819, when the Sikh Empire routed them from the Kashmir Valley, and annexed parts of Poonch (eastern half). They subsequently lost rule in any remaining territories in Kashmir.^[8]

Tribal Coalitions (1819–1832)

In the western parts of Poonch (modern day Poonch Division, AJK) the local tribes had entrenched themselves in the hills. The Muslim tribes of the region formed a defensive coalition against the Sikhs, at the head of which was the Sudhan tribe.^[9]

After Gulab Singh received the chakla of Jammu as a jagir (autonomous territory), he made renewed attempts at conquering Poonch, but the armies he raised were not large enough to defeat the resistance, and consequently he would face defeats before being forced to withdraw.^[10]

In 1832, Gulab Singh convinced Ranjit Singh to attack the coalition. Ranjit marched with an army of 60,000 troops alongside an assortment of hill cannons. The coalition made the decision to surrender, accepting the suzerainty of the Sikhs over Poonch.^[11]

Sikh Empire (1819–1846)

The Sikhs had conquered the eastern part of Poonch in 1819, but did not exert full control over it until the tribal coalition was defeated in 1832.^[9]

In 1822, Ranjit Singh appointed Gulab Singh as the Raja of Jammu and, in 1827, appointed Dhyan Singh as the Raja of Bhimber, Chibbal and Poonch^[12] (covering the Mirpur and Poonch districts as of 1947^[13]). Dhyan Singh spent most of his time in Lahore, subsequently becoming the diwan (prime minister) in the Sikh court. Gulab Singh is said to have managed his jagirs on his behalf.

In 1837, the hill tribes of Poonch, led by the Sudhans^[14] launched a rebellion. They captured Sikh garrisons and defeated the son of Gulab Singh, Ottam Singh, whom had been sent with a force of five thousand troops to crush the rebellion. Though the rebels captured the majority of Poonch, after Gulab Singh returned from his campaign against the Yusufzai, he was able to incite treachery within the rebellion. Gulab Singh then attacked with an army of twenty-thousand which he had raised in Kahuta, and after fierce fighting and aid of Sikh reinforcements, he captured key forts of the rebels and their leaders, flaying alive Sudhan sardars Malli Khan and Sabz Ali Khan, executions of other commanders and notables from the rebellious tribes and killed the main leader of the rebellion, Shams Khan. Gulab Singh's forces caused devastation and massacres within captured rebel territory, due to which he faced controversy, particularly by the British, and obtained the reputation of a tyrant.^{[12][15][16][17]}

After the death of Ranjit Singh in 1839, the Sikh court fell into anarchy and palace intrigues took over. Dhyan Singh, Suchet Singh as well as Dhyan Singh's son Hira Singh were murdered in these struggles.^[18] Poonch was confiscated by the Sikh Durbar on the grounds that the Rajas had rebelled against the state and handed it over to Faiz Talib Khan of Rajouri.^[19]

Princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (1846–1947)

After the First Anglo-Sikh War (1845–1846) and the subsequent Treaties of Lahore and Amritsar, the entire territory between the Beas and the Indus rivers was transferred to Gulab Singh, including Poonch. He was recognised an independent ruler, a maharaja, of the newly created state of Jammu and Kashmir.^[20] Gulab Singh reinstated the jagir of Poonch to Jawahir Singh, the eldest remaining son of Dhyan Singh. Thus, the Dogra dynasty became the rulers of the state.^[19]

In the 1947 Poonch Revolt, the rebels expelled Dogras from Poonch (modern day Poonch Division, AJK), and established Azad Kashmir.^{[21][22][23][24]}

Separation of Poonch

Main articles: 1947 Poonch rebellion and Indo-Pakistani War of 1947

Map of Azad Kashmir with the Poonch Division highlighted in red
(The Poonch Divion was created from the Azad Kashmiri-administered portion of the pre-1947 Poonch District.)

After independence in 1947, there was a rebellion in the western part of the Poonch District. The rebels led by Sardar Ibrahim Khan, sought support from the Dominion of Pakistan, which provided arms and then launched an invasion of its own, using Pashtun tribals. In response, the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir joined India, and the conflict turned into an Indo-Pakistani war. When a ceasefire was effected, the Poonch District was divided into two separate districts. The former headquarters, the city of Poonch, came under Indian occupation, and a new headquarters in the western district was eventually established at Rawalakot.

1949 to Present

The Pakistan-administered portion of the Poonch district was reorganised as the Poonch Division. Of the four tehsils of the original Poonch District, viz., Bagh, Sudhnoti, Haveli, and Mendhar, the Poonch Division included the first two and a portion of the third. Those three tehsils were eventually made separate districts, and a new Poonch District was created in the center of the Poonch Division by incorporating portions of the Bagh and Sudhnoti tehsils.

Poonch district was the main area of violent anti government revolt (led by the Sudhan tribe) during the 1955 Poonch uprising, which lasted from early 1955 to late 1956.^[25]

Administrative divisions

The district is administratively subdivided into four tehsils:^[26]

Rawalakot map

• Abbaspur Tehsil
• Hajira Tehsil
• Rawalakot Tehsil
• Thorar Tehsil

Towns

Khai Gala

Barmang

Dhamni

Ali Sojal

Jandali

Shaheed Gala

Dothan

Education

According to the Pakistan District Education Ranking 2017, a report released by Alif Ailaan, the Poonch District is ranked at number 8 nationally, with an education score of 73.52. Over the past five years, the Poonch District has shown the most improvement in the establishment of middle schools. The learning score for the Poonch District is 84.15.^[27] The school infrastructure score for the Poonch District is 14.88, ranking the district at number 151, which places it in the bottom five districts relating to infrastructure in Pakistan and its two dependent territories. Schools in the Poonch District also have severe problems with regard to electricity, drinking water, and boundary walls, as reflected in their scores of 2.67, 12.1, and 6.23, respectively.^[27] The state of some school buildings also presents a major safety risk for students.

Transport

The Poonch-Rawalakot Bus, which crosses the LOC, has helped to re-establish ties across the border.^[28]

See also

• History of Poonch District
• Poonch district, India
• 1947 Poonch Rebellion
• Poonch Medical College in Rawalakot
• Shaheed Gala
• Hussainkot

References

1. The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary sources (a) through (e), reflecting due weight in the coverage. Although "controlled" and "held" are also applied neutrally to the names of the disputants or to the regions administered by them, as evidenced in sources (h) through (i) below, "held" is also considered politicised usage, as is the term "occupied," (see (j) below).
   (a) Kashmir, region Indian subcontinent, Encyclopaedia Britannica, retrieved 15 August 2019 (subscription required) Quote: "Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subcontinent ... has been the subject of dispute between India and Pakistan since the partition of the Indian subcontinent in 1947. The northern and western portions are administered by Pakistan and comprise three areas: Azad Kashmir, Gilgit, and Baltistan, the last two being part of a territory called the Northern Areas. Administered by India are the southern and southeastern portions, which constitute the state of Jammu and Kashmir but are slated to be split into two union territories.";
   (b) Pletcher, Kenneth, Aksai Chin, Plateau Region, Asia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, retrieved 16 August 2019 (subscription required) Quote: "Aksai Chin, Chinese (Pinyin) Aksayqin, portion of the Kashmir region, at the northernmost extent of the Indian subcontinent in south-central Asia. It constitutes nearly all the territory of the Chinese-administered sector of Kashmir that is claimed by India to be part of the Ladakh area of Jammu and Kashmir state.";
   (c) "Kashmir", Encyclopedia Americana, Scholastic Library Publishing, 2006, p. 328, ISBN 978-0-7172-0139-6 C. E Bosworth, University of Manchester Quote: "KASHMIR, kash'mer, the northernmost region of the Indian subcontinent, administered partlv by India, partly by Pakistan, and partly by China. The region has been the subject of a bitter dispute between India and Pakistan since they became independent in 1947";
   (d) Osmańczyk, Edmund Jan (2003), Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Agreements: G to M, Taylor & Francis, pp. 1191–, ISBN 978-0-415-93922-5 Quote: "Jammu and Kashmir: Territory in northwestern India, subject to a dispute between India and Pakistan. It has borders with Pakistan and China."
   (e) Talbot, Ian (2016), A History of Modern South Asia: Politics, States, Diasporas, Yale University Press, pp. 28–29, ISBN 978-0-300-19694-8 Quote: "We move from a disputed international border to a dotted line on the map that represents a military border not recognized in international law. The line of control separates the Indian and Pakistani administered areas of the former Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir.";
   (f) Skutsch, Carl (2015) [2007], "China: Border War with India, 1962", in Ciment, James (ed.), Encyclopedia of Conflicts Since World War II (2nd ed.), London and New York: Routledge, p. 573, ISBN 978-0-7656-8005-1, The situation between the two nations was complicated by the 1957–1959 uprising by Tibetans against Chinese rule. Refugees poured across the Indian border, and the Indian public was outraged. Any compromise with China on the border issue became impossible. Similarly, China was offended that India had given political asylum to the Dalai Lama when he fled across the border in March 1959. In late 1959, there were shots fired between border patrols operating along both the ill-defined McMahon Line and in the Aksai Chin.
   (g) Clary, Christopher (2022), The Difficult Politics of Peace: Rivalry in Modern South Asia, Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, p. 109, ISBN 9780197638408, Territorial Dispute: The situation along the Sino-Indian frontier continued to worsen. In late July (1959), an Indian reconnaissance patrol was blocked, "apprehended," and eventually expelled after three weeks in custody at the hands of a larger Chinese force near Khurnak Fort in Aksai Chin. ... Circumstances worsened further in October 1959, when a major class at Kongka Pass in eastern Ladakh led to nine dead and ten captured Indian border personnel, making it by far the most serious Sino-Indian class since India's independence.
   (h) Bose, Sumantra (2009), Kashmir: Roots of Conflict, Paths to Peace, Harvard University Press, pp. 294, 291, 293, ISBN 978-0-674-02855-5 Quote: "J&K: Jammu and Kashmir. The former princely state that is the subject of the Kashmir dispute. Besides IJK (Indian-controlled Jammu and Kashmir. The larger and more populous part of the former princely state. It has a population of slightly over 10 million, and comprises three regions: Kashmir Valley, Jammu, and Ladakh.) and AJK ('Azad" (Free) Jammu and Kashmir. The more populous part of Pakistani-controlled J&K, with a population of approximately 2.5 million.), it includes the sparsely populated "Northern Areas" of Gilgit and Baltistan, remote mountainous regions which are directly administered, unlike AJK, by the Pakistani central authorities, and some high-altitude uninhabitable tracts under Chinese control."
   (i) Fisher, Michael H. (2018), An Environmental History of India: From Earliest Times to the Twenty-First Century, Cambridge University Press, p. 166, ISBN 978-1-107-11162-2 Quote: "Kashmir’s identity remains hotly disputed with a UN-supervised “Line of Control” still separating Pakistani-held Azad (“Free”) Kashmir from Indian-held Kashmir.";
   (j) Snedden, Christopher (2015), Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris, Oxford University Press, p. 10, ISBN 978-1-84904-621-3 Quote:"Some politicised terms also are used to describe parts of J&K. These terms include the words 'occupied' and 'held'."
2. "Statistical Year Book 2019" (PDF). Statistics Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
3. Rahman, Tariq (1996). Language and politics in Pakistan. Oxford University Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-19-577692-8.
4. "AJK at glance -2020" (PDF). Planning and Development Department of AJK.
5. "University of Poonch VC Prof. Dr. Zakaria directed to complete construction of campuses on war footing". Azadi Times. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
6. Statistical Year Book 2020 (PDF). Muzaffarabad: AJ&K Bureau Of Statistics. p. 140. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
8. Snedden, Christopher (2015). Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris. Oxford University Press. pp. 43, 44. ISBN 978-1-84904-342-7.
9. Saraf, Muhammad Yusuf (1977). Kashmiris Fight for Freedom: 1819-1946 (PDF). University of California: Ferozsons. p. 77. Although Sikhs were able, to a large extent, to subdue Muslims of Kashmir valley, they did not succeed in fully subjugating the people living in hilly areas, particularly those in Poonch
10. Saraf, Muhammad Yusuf (1977). Kashmiris Fight for Freedom: 1819-1946 (PDF). University of California: Ferozsons. p. 85. About the year 1832, Gulab Singh, who had already acquired the Chakla of Jammu as Jagir from Maharaja Ranjit Singh, made many attempts at the conquest of the district of Poonch, which was inhabited by martial tribes like the 'Sudhans'.
11. Saraf, Muhammad Yusuf (1977). Kashmiris Fight for Freedom: 1819-1946 (PDF). University of California: Ferozsons. p. 85. Gulab Singh prevailed upon Ranjit Singh, mainly through the influence of his brothers Dhian Singh and Suchet Singh, to attack Poonch. Consequently, Ranjit Singh marched at the head of a force as large as sixty thousand equipped with a hundred and fifty pieces of ordinances which boomed day and night in the hills surrounding the territory. Instead of putting up a fight, the local leadership thought it advisable to make peace and accept the Maharaja's sovereignty in order to save their territory from the destruction that such a huge army with its artillery could have inflicted. Shamas Khan, the outstanding local leader, was taken a hostage and entrusted to the care of Dhian Singh.
12. Snedden, Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris 2015, p. 63. sfn error: no target: CITEREFSnedden,_Understanding_Kashmir_and_Kashmiris2015 (help)
13. A peep into Bhimber, Daily Excelsior, 6 November 2016.
14. Carmichael Smyth, G. (1847). "The Soodhun Revolt." In The History of the Reigning Family of Lahore (pp. 205–212). Archive.org. English.
15. Panikkar, Gulab Singh 1930, pp. 31–40. sfn error: no target: CITEREFPanikkar,_Gulab_Singh1930 (help)
16. Saraf, Muhammad Yusuf (1977). Kashmiris Fight for Freedom: 1819-1946 (PDF). University of California: Ferozsons. pp. 85–89. During our interview, the Maharaja volunteered an explanation of the grounds on which he had obtained the character of a cruel tyrant, saying that in the Suodan country, the people had not only put his garrisons to the sword but cut up many of the soldiers piece-meal and thrown their corpses to the dogs, that in punishment for such atrocities and prevention of them for the future, he had flayed three ring-leaders. He then said that he would request for the services of... ((I Vigne, p. 241. 2 Maulvl Mlr Alam p. 97)) an advisor, after arriving in Kashmir by whose counsel he would abide his conduct."
17. Carmichael Smyth, G. (1847). "The Soodhun Revolt." In The History of the Reigning Family of Lahore (pp. 205–212). Archive.org. English.
18. Panikkar, Gulab Singh 1930, Chapters III, IV. sfn error: no target: CITEREFPanikkar,_Gulab_Singh1930 (help)
19. Panikkar, Gulab Singh 1930, p. 121. sfn error: no target: CITEREFPanikkar,_Gulab_Singh1930 (help)
20. Satinder Singh, Raja Gulab Singh's Role 1971, pp. 52–53. sfn error: no target: CITEREFSatinder_Singh,_Raja_Gulab_Singh's_Role1971 (help)
21. Josef Korbel, Danger in Kashmir, New York:United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan Report, 1954, pp.49–54
22. Snedden, Christopher. "The forgotten Poonch uprising of 1947". India-seminar.
23. Copland, State, Community and Neighbourhood in Princely North India (2005), p. 143. sfnp error: no target: CITEREFCopland,_State,_Community_and_Neighbourhood_in_Princely_North_India2005 (help)
24. Singh, Brigadier Jasbir (2013). Roar of the Tiger: Illustrated History of Operations in Kashmir by 4th Battalion. Vij Books India. pp. 4–5. ISBN 978-9382652038.
25. Snedden, Christopher (2013). Kashmir: The Unwritten History. India: Harper Collins Publishers. ISBN 978-9350298978.
26. "Tehsils of Poonch District on AJK map". ajk.gov.pk. AJK Official Portal. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
27. "Pakistan District Education Rankings 2017" (PDF). elections.alifailaan.pk. Alif Ailaan. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2019.
28. Mughal, Roshan (16 April 2011). "Intra-Kashmir bus service completes six years". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 21 November 2023.

Bibliography

• Snedden, Christopher (2013) [first published as The Untold Story of the People of Azad Kashmir, 2012], Kashmir: The Unwritten History, HarperCollins India, ISBN 978-9350298985
• Snedden, Christopher (2015), Understanding Kashmir and Kashmiris, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-1-84904-342-7

External links

• Official website of the Government of Azad Kashmir
• Azad Jammu and Kashmir travel guide from Wikivoyage