Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas (4 February 1904 – 18 December 1967) was a leading

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory since 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered by India as a state from 1952 to 2019 * Jammu and Kashmir (prin ...

and the President of the Muslim Conference party. After his migration to

Pakistan administered Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. The term has since ...

in 1947, he became the head of the

Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir ( ), is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger ...

(AJK) government.

Early life and career

Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas was born into a middle-class

Gujjar The Gurjar (or Gujjar, Gujar, Gurjara) are an agricultural ethnic community, residing mainly in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, divided internally into various clan groups. They were traditionally involved in agriculture, pastoral and nomadic ...

family to Chaudhry Nawab Khan on 4 February 1904 in

Jammu Jammu () is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute ...

. His ancestors moved from

Jalandhar Jalandhar () is a city in the state of Punjab, India, Punjab in India. With a considerable population, it ranks as the List of cities in Punjab and Chandigarh by population, third most-populous city in the state and is the largest city in the ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

during the middle of the 19th century. He graduated from the Prince of Wales College, Jammu. He received his law degree from the Lahore Law College and started his career as a lawyer in Jammu. He was offered a position of Sub-Judge but he refused to serve the Dogra Raj in Kashmir. He reorganized the socio-political organization Young Men’s Muslim Association, which was established earlier in 1909 and was the only platform that Muslims were using to raise their political voice in Jammu and Kashmir. This organization held some massive demonstrations against the Dogra rule. As a result, the Association became very popular among the Muslim public. To protect the rights of the Muslims of the

Valley of Kashmir The Kashmir Valley, also known as the Vale of Kashmir, is an intermontane valley in northern Jammu and Kashmir, a region in Indian-administered Kashmir.(a) (subscription required) Quote: "Kashmir, region of the northwestern Indian subconti ...

, another organization,

All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference The All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference () also shortly referred as Muslim Conference (MC) is a political party in Pakistan administered territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The party was founded in 1941 by Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, and Syed ...

was established. Its president was

Sheikh Abdullah Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (5 December 1905 – 8 September 1982) was an Indian politician who played a central role in the politics of Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah was the founding leader and President of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Confer ...

while Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas was elected as its secretary general. Later the organization was renamed as

Jammu and Kashmir National Conference The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) is a regional political party in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir union territory and Ladakh. Founded as the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference by ...

. But when Sheikh Abdullah developed his association with

Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a prin ...

and the

All India National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

, Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas withdrew from the National Conference. Consequently, the Muslim Conference was revived under the leadership of Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas and

Agha Shaukat Ali Agha Shaukat Ali (1919 – 19 March 2013) was a civil servant turned politician in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, British Indian Empire. He served as the General Secretary of the Muslim Conference party in the years preceding the Pa ...

. The Muslim Conference demanded Kashmir affiliation to Pakistan on 19 July 1947. Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas campaigned for the affiliation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan. He arrived in Pakistan after the transfer of prisoners in 1948 when the ceasefire in the

Kashmir conflict The Kashmir conflict is a territorial conflict over the Kashmir region, primarily between India and Pakistan, and also between China and India in the northeastern portion of the region. The conflict started after the partition of India in 1 ...

took effect and served the Azad Kashmir government till 1951. He presented the case of Pakistan in the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

along with Muhammad Ibrahim Khan when India took the Kashmir issue there.

ended up drawing the cease-fire line to stop the fighting. In 1951, he resigned as head of the Azad Kashmir government and did not participate in government politics after that.Profile of Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas on storyofpakistan.com website
Published 1 January 2007, Retrieved 22 September 2021

Death and legacy

Abbas died of stomach cancer in Rawalpindi on 18 December 1967 and was laid to rest in Faizabad near

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...

, close to the capital city of

Islamabad Islamabad (; , ; ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's tenth-most populous city with a population of over 1.1 million and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital Territory. Bu ...

, Pakistan.Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas remembered
The Nation (newspaper), Published 19 December 2014, Retrieved 22 September 2021 In 1995,

Pakistan Postal Services Pakistan Post () is a state enterprise which functions as Pakistan's primary and largest postal operator. 49,502 employees through a vehicle fleet of 5,000 operate traditional "to the door" service from more than 13,419 post offices across the ...

issued a commemorative postage stamp to honor his services.Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas's Commemorative Postage Stamp
Retrieved 22 September 2021 In 2006, a public event was organized in

, Pakistan to observe his death anniversary on 19 December 2006 where the leaders of the

Sardar Abdul Qayyum Sardar Muhammad Abdul Qayyum Khan (also known as ʻAbdul Qayyūm K̲h̲ān, Urdu: سردار محمد عبدالقيوم خان) was a Azad Kashmiri politician who also served as the president and prime minister of Azad Kashmir. He also remained ...

and

Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan () (1 June 1932 – 9 October 2021) was an Azad Kashmiri politician who served as the Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir for two non-consecutives terms. He also served as the President of Azad Kashmir twice. He was the ...

paid tributes to him.Kashmiris vow to continue liberation struggle (on death anniversary of Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas)
Dawn (newspaper), Published 19 December 2006, Retrieved 22 September 2021 In 2014, on the death anniversary of Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, an event was organized at Aiwan-i-Karkunan-i-Tehreek-i-Pakistan in

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

to pay tributes to this dedicated leader of

Pakistan Movement The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation the ...

and Kashmir liberation struggle.

Books

By him

*''Kashmakash'', 2010. Autobiography.

About him

*''Qāʼid-i Kashmīr : Chaudhrī G̲h̲ulām ʻAbbās'', 1988, by Bashīr Aḥmad Quraishī. *''Ḥayāt-i Qāʼid-i Kashmīr, Chauhdrī G̲h̲ulām ʻAbbās'', 1992, by Sayyid Mahmūd Āzād. *''Chauhdrī G̲h̲ulām ʻAbbās : Shak̲h̲ṣiyyat aur Kārnāme'', 1992, by G̲h̲ulām Ḥusain Aẓhar. *''Qāʼid-i Millat Chauhdarī G̲h̲ulām ʻAbbās'', 2004, by Javvād Ḥusain Jaʻfarī. *''Qāʼid-i Kashmīr aur Taḥrīk-i Kashmīr'', 2005, by Muḥammad Yaʻqūb Chauhdarī.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbas, Chaudhry Ghulam People from Jammu district People from Azad Kashmir 1904 births 1967 deaths Pakistan Movement activists from Kashmir Deaths from stomach cancer in Pakistan Jammu & Kashmir National Conference politicians Ranghar 20th-century politicians