British rule became established in eastern India around the mid-eighteenth century, and by the early nineteenth century, the British had tightened their grip over considerable areas of South Asia. The suppression of the Indian revolt of 1857-58 resulted in a period of further, strict oppression, which would last ninety years, when India was directly under Crown rule. It was not until 1947 that the British Empire ceased its control over the region when India and Pakistan won independence following a nationalist struggle lasting nearly three decades. This event is known as the Partition of India and it resulted in the division of the colony into the predominantly Hindu Union of India and the predominantly Muslim Dominion of Pakistan. With the desire to be with their reflective cultures, between 12 to 14 million left their home to take up residence across the border; hence, the partition remains the single largest episode of the relocation of people in modern history.
Unfortunately, the Kashmir region had been in the middle of all of this in chaos; both states claimed it after partition. As a region lost in complete obscurity in regard to who had true control over it, various groups fought to take it as their own new homeland after being driven out of their places of origin. Therefore, it can be concluded that much of the Kashmir conflict can be traced back to this partition as the partition created a survival-of-the-fittest scenario between the displaced parties. In other words, as many groups were forced into the region seeking refuge, unable to turn back, they had no choice but to fight each other for the land. There was no chance for peace with so many desperate groups displaced so suddenly. With all the unrest, both India and Pakistan sought out to officially take the region for themselves to have under complete control over the people and resources.
