Society and Politics of Jammu and Kashmir

Kashmir is one of the longest-standing conflicts yet to be resolved by the international community. In 2000, Bill Clinton declared it the most dangerous place in the world and since then the situation continues to escalate. Positioned between India, Pakistan and China – three nuclear powers – Kashmir is the most militarized zone on the planet. Against this backdrop, the urgency to understand what Jammu and Kashmir means to those who actually belong to its territory has increased. This book not only helps readers navigate subtleties in a complex part of the world but is the first of its kind – written for a global audience from local perspectives, which to date have been sorely lacking.

“For more than seventy years a bloody conflict has smouldered in Kashmir, its truths mostly obscured by broad brushstrokes that portray it as an ‘issue’ between India and Pakistan. This new collection vigorously contests this, bringing together diverse points of view on the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state. In reprising the complexity of this region, it marks it as special and shows us where hope might lie in the future.” (Sanjay Kak, Award-Winning Filmmaker and Writer)

“Examining Jammu & Kashmir’s complex history and the many ruptures in its past and present, this book offers diverse perspectives, providing a rich addition to the existing scholarship on the region. By bringing together a variety of voices and themes on one platform, it seeks to bridge the disconnect between two sides of the LoC and also offers nuanced understanding of inter-regional contestations.” (Anuradha Bhasin, Executive Editor, Kashmir Times)

“Kashmir is one of the world’s least understood conflicts. In this critically important volume, Serena Hussain has brought together a remarkable range of voices covering a broad range of topics. Its incisive and insightful chapters present nuanced perspectives making this book essential reading on Kashmir.” (David Barsamian, Director of Alternative Radio)

"The multiple contestations and discourses about Kashmir - varying from political to cultural -  find needed voices in the volume that takes us beyond the familiar Indo-Pakistani formulations over this disputed region connecting the Sub-continent with Central Asia. As the contributions by these predominantly Kashmiri authors suggest, identitarian politics with all its subtleties, remains the focal point necessitating a more grassroots based approach to the resolution of one of the most severely taxing issues in world politics.” (Professor Iftikhar Malik, Wolfson College, University of Oxford)

“This is an interesting collection, covering diverse but important topics relating to Jammu and Kashmir understood in its widest territorial form. Primarily including scholars who have family ties with the area, and from both sides of the contested border, it offers important insights into the disputed territory.” (Professor Katharine Adeney, University of Nottingham)

Serena Hussain is Associate Professor of Sociology and Human Geography. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of Bristol and a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Oxford. As well as her time in academia, she has worked as an expert consultant for a number of British government departments and organizations such as Ipsos MORI, BBC World Service and Islamic Relief Worldwide.